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♦ 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 






‘The ayes have it. We’ll start to-morrow morning.” 

•/ o 




A TRIP WITH 
A TRAILER 


BY 

Cv- 

iWivFLAVIA CAMP CANFIELD 

■ »4 

AUTHOR OF “ THE KIDNAPPED CAMPERS,” “ THE KIDNAPPED 
CAMPERS ON THE ROAD,” “ THE REFUGEE FAMILY,” 

“ THE BIG TENT,” “ THE HOP PICKERS ” 




NEW YORK 

HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY 






4 



COPYRIGHT, 1923, BY 
HARCOURT, BRACE AND COMPANY, INC. 



PRINTED IN THE U. 8. A. BY 
THE QUINN & BODEN COMPANY 
RAHWAY, N. J. 


FEB 2 8'23 

©C1AC90524 

^ 'd | 


TO 

MY GRANDCHILDREN 










CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 

I 

The Tourists . 

• 

• 



PAGE 

3 

II 

Granny 

• 




17 

III 

Camp Allserene . 

• 




28 

IV 

On the Road Again 

• 




37 

V 

Planning 

• 




49 

VI 

The First Show . 

• 




60 

VII 

New Experiences . 

• 




71 

VIII 

Making Movies 

• 




82 

IX 

•w 

Tony Makes a Hit . 

• 




96 

X 

Granny as a Movie 

Star 




110 

XI 

Settling . 

• 




123 

XII 

On Wheels Again . 

• 




135 

XIII 

Silas Crockett 

• 




141 

XIV 

Camp Silas 

• 




- 168 

XV 

The Silas Crockett 

Benefit 



180 

XVI 

A Leisurely Week 

• 




193 

XVII 

The Fire . 

• 




200 

XVIII 

The Rescuers . 

• 




215 

XIX 

Homeward Bound . 

• 


• 

• 

223 









LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 


“The ayes have it. We’ll start to-morrow morn¬ 
ing” . Frontispiece 

She played the part with a great deal of intelli¬ 
gence and skill. 

He looked very beautiful in his bright peasant’s 
costume. 

“Don’t give up, Uncle Weary’ll save us yet” . 


FACING 

PAGE 


116 

184 

220 











A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 




















CHAPTER I 


THE TOURISTS 

Y F the people in the little Illinois village of 
Briarville had been looking out of their 
windows or walking on their main street one 
hot day in June, they would have wondered at 
a rather novel sight. 

A large touring automobile, covered with 
dust, was chugging past their houses. The car 
itself would not have attracted attention, for 
the villagers were used to seeing dusty touring 
cars scudding through their principal thorough¬ 
fare; the dust and noise they made were a 
standing grievance to the housekeepers, but this 
particular car made the people who saw it stare 
with curiosity. 

It had behind, and fastened to it, a two¬ 
wheeled vehicle like a cart which bobbed gaily 
along like a little dog trying to keep up with 
its master. It was tilled to the brim, and the 

3 


4 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

contents were covered with a neat *‘tarpaulin’* 
strapped tightly to its sides. 

The car stopped before a small store with 
the sign over the door in large black letters, 
“General Merchandise,” and a yonng man 
jumped out. He was tall and stooping, with 
long thin legs which were encased in khaki rid¬ 
ing breeches. He wore a dust coat of linen 
with a collar turned up to meet a cloth hat 
which was pulled down over his ears. The 
only feature of his face really visible was a 
large nose, on the bridge of which perched a 
pair of dark goggles. 

The young man took off his hat and shook 
the dust from it. His bare handsome head, 
covered with closely cropped reddish hair, to¬ 
gether with his thin, tanned, aquiline face, made 
him look like a professional man of importance. 

“Want some sodas, boys'?” he said, glanc¬ 
ing at the window of the store, where a con¬ 
spicuous placard bore the words, “Ice Cream 
and Soda.” 

Two boys tumbled, chuckling, out of the car, 


THE TOURISTS 5 

along with a little dog, and raced up the steps 
of the little store, disappearing through its 
open door as an answer to the question. Two 
ladies, on the back seat, laughed, and the young 
man, turning to them, asked: 

“How about you two? Shall I bring you 
something or will you go in and order for your¬ 
selves ?” 

The elder of the two answered promptly, “I’d 
like a glass of cold water, and that’s all I want.” 

“Bring me some vanilla and chocolate ice¬ 
cream, please, Will,” said the younger one. 

“All right,” he replied, throwing his dust 
coat on the front seat. “Come on, Tony.” 

A small dark Italian young man at the wheel, 
with a broad grin which showed two rows of 
glistening teeth, followed his master up the 
steps. 

The fat, red-faced storekeeper with shirt 
sleeves rolled up to his elbows came forward to 
meet the newcomers. 

The tall young man extended his hand, say¬ 
ing, “My name is Williams.” 


6 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


The storekeeper looked rather surprised as 
he shook hands. He was evidently unused to 
such cordiality from strangers. He seemed to 
like it, however, for he answered in a friendly 
voice, “Glad to see you, Mr. Williams. My 
name is Boise. You’re tourin’, I see. Pretty 
hot day to be out on the road, ain’t it!” 

“Well, it isn’t exactly what you’d call arctic,” 
said the tourist in rather a drawling tone. 
“But we’re used to it. Been on the road two 
weeks now, and when we see a sign like yours 
in the window we always stop to cool off.” 

“Well, well! That’s right, too,” laughed the 
little man, rubbing his hands together in a 
pleased way. “What’ll ye have!” 

The young man gave his order, and was 
served by a boy who looked astonishingly like 
the proprietor of the store, and was evidently 
his son. The two boys were perched on high 
stools at the counter contentedly sucking their 
favorite sodas through straws, occasionally 
feeding the dog bits of cookies. 

Mr. Williams sent Tony to the car with water 


THE TOURISTS 


7 


and ice-cream for his wife and mother, from 
which errand the young fellow returned 
quickly for his soda, which he had learned to 
like very much, while the two men chatted 
sociably. 

“Them yourn?” asked Mr. Boise, pointing 
with his thumb over his shoulder toward the 
two boys. 

“No, I’d be ashamed to own such look¬ 
ing kids,” returned the tourist scornfully. 
“They’re traveling round with me because I 
can’t get rid of them. They stick tighter than 
burrs.” 

He spoke loud enough for the boys to hear, 
but they did not seem to be disturbed by the 
uncomplimentary speech. They giggled as 
though they enjoyed it, and as they had drained 
the last drop from their glasses, each one took 
a purse from his pocket and paid for his re¬ 
freshment, and touching their caps politely as 
they passed Mr. Boise, they ran down the steps 
of the store. The storekeeper looked mystified. 

“They seem like mighty fine little fellers,” 


8 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

he remarked,‘‘don’t see nothin’ to be ashamed 
of in them.” 

Mr. Williams laughed. “Oh, they’ll do on a 
pinch, I guess.” 

“I reckon you’re a joker,” returned the other 
man, grinning. “I’ll know how to take you 
after this. Want to stop at a first-class hotel!” 
he went on. “I can send you to a good one just 
up the street.” 

“See that!” asked the tourist, pointing to 
the cart back of his car. “Well, that’s my 
home. My wife and I wouldn’t trade it for all 
the hotels in the world.” 

“By gum! If ’tain’t a trailer,” exclaimed 
the other. “I seen one o’ them at the county 
fair last fall. An operator opened it up and 
fixed it. Just like a house, ain’t it, and a lot 
more comfortable than some houses!” 

“Got a good camping place round here!” 
asked Mr. Williams. 

“Dandy,” answered the man heartily. “It’s 
about a quarter of a mile from here, off the 
main road. Tourists often stay there overnight 


THE TOURISTS 


9 


and sometimes they like it so well they don’t go 
on for a week.” 

“Too close neighbors,” said the young man, 
shaking his head. 

“Oh, it’s too early for tourists,” the other 
hastened to say; “they don’t begin to come usu¬ 
ally till after the Fourth.” 

“Any fishing round here?” asked the stran¬ 
ger. 

“You bet there is. About a half mile from 
the camp there’s a river about as good as any 
you’ll find in Illinois. It’s full of fish and the 
fisliin’ season ain’t over yet.” 

“That sounds pretty good,” said the tourist. 
“I’ll ask my women folks what they think of 
settling down here for a few days. We’re 
pretty tired.” 

They walked together to the automobile, and 
the younger man introduced Mr. Boise to his 
wife and mother and said: 

“This man tells me there is a good place 
to camp near here and good fishing. What do 
you say to trying it for a few days?” 


10 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Oh, let’s stop, Will,” cried his wife. “We 
are all so tired and dirty, it would be nice to 
have a chance to really rest and get clean.” 

“Are there trees and good water near your 
camp, Mr. Boise?” asked the bright-eyed little 
old lady from her corner on the back seat. 

“First rate water, ma’am,” he answered. 
“There’s a big cold spring right there, and as 
for trees, why, the camp is in a grove of ’em.” 

“We might go and look at the place,” re¬ 
marked the young wife. 

“That’s a good idea,” said the storekeeper. 
“You’ll be tickled to death with it. Everybody 
is.” 

“Where shall we go to get permission to 
camp, if we like it?” asked the young man. 

“Permission nothin’,” returned Mr. Boise 
scornfully. “This village fixed up the place a 
purpose for tourists to camp in. There’s so 
many of ’em now’days, wantin’ to roost on 
vacant lots and meadows and woods, makin’ so 
much muss and noise, we sort o’ had to fix a 
nice place for ’em where they’d like to go.” 


THE TOURISTS 


11 


“Yes, I see,” said Mr. Williams, “it’s a good 
idea, too. Nice for the campers and not bad 
for the town. I suppose the campers buy their 
supplies from your store, don’t they?” 

“Yes, we get considerable trade from ’em 
during the season. I guess it pays to keep up 
the place,” said the storekeeper, laughing. 

“Well, I must get some gas,” said Mr. Wil¬ 
liams, “and then we’ll drive out to see the 
grounds. I suppose any one would show us the 
way. ’ ’ 

“My boy’ll go with you to the garage and to 
the park. He’d like no better fun than that,” 
offered the storekeeper cordially. 

Just then the taller of the two boys came 
up to the men and said, “Uncle Weary, can’t 
Archie and me stay here to buy some fishing 
tackle while you go for the gas?” 

“Archie and 1, dear,” corrected the old lady 
in a clear staccato voice. 

“Oh, yes, Archie and //’ said the little fel¬ 
low, smiling. 

There was no objection to this plan, and the 


12 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


grinning boy, whose name was Joe, took his 
seat in the car to act as guide. The tourist 
boys went into the store to make their pur¬ 
chases and then sat on empty boxes on the plat¬ 
form outside to wait for the return of the car. 

Mr. Boise came out presently with three large 
palm leaf fans. He gave one to each boy, and 
seating himself on the top step and leaning 
against a pillar, began to fan himself vigor¬ 
ously. 

“Pretty hot weather we got out here,” he 
said, by way of opening a conversation with 
the boys. “I s’pose you don’t have it like 
this where you cum from.” 

1 ‘ Oh, yes, it gets pretty warm in Boston and 
Rochester, where Archie and I live. Uncle 
Weary and Aunt Em and Granny and Tony 
spent last winter in Florida. I guess it gets 
pretty warm down there,” returned the taller 
boy. 

“Well, you seem to be a pretty scattered fam¬ 
ily,” remarked Mr. Boise. “You don’t seem 
to hang together very well.” 


THE TOURISTS 


13 


“Oh, we’re not one family at all,” corrected 
the boy, “ ’cept of course when we’re traveling 
together in our vacations. Archie and I’ve 
been camping with Uncle Weary two summers. 
This is the third one.” 

“Is your name Williams, too, like your 
uncle ’s?” asked the man. 

“No, my name is Edward Taggart, and his,” 
pointing to the other boy, “is Archibald Steb- 
bins. They call us ‘Archie and Eddie.’ ” 

“Oh, I see,” returned the man, who seemed 
much interested in this history, for after plac¬ 
ing a round straw cushion, or mat, on the steps 
to make his seat softer, he went on with his 
questions. 

“Well, Eddie, how old are you and Archie?” 
he asked. 

“I’m most eleven and Archie’s twelve,” re¬ 
turned the boy. 

‘ £ Is your grandmother your uncle’s mother ? ’ ’ 
was the next question. 

“Oh, no, she’s just a ’dopted mother. We’re 
all of us ’dopted ’cept Aunt Em. Uncle Weary 


U A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

isn’t our uncle at all. We just call him ‘Uncle 
Weary’ for fun. He told us to. He found 
Granny last summer in a terrible flood we all 
got caught in and she’s been living with them 
ever since.” 

“You don’t say! Well, that was nice for 
her, wasn’t it!” 

“It’s nice for all of us,” cried Eddie. “She’s 
lovely.” 

“Yes, I ’spect so,” said Mr. Boise kindly; 
“she looks that way.” 

“Uncle Weary and Aunt Em call her mother 
and we call her Granny, ’ ’ went on the boy, ap¬ 
parently as anxious to talk about his party as 
Mr. Boise was to listen. 

“Queer name your uncle’s got,” remarked 
the man. “Sounds ’most like a tramp, though 
I must say he don’t look much like one.” 

“Yes, isn’t it funny!” laughed the boy. “It’s 
just like him to call himself that. He’s always 
joking. His real name is William Williams. 
You see, Archie and me, Archie and I, were 


THE TOURISTS 15 

camping with him summer before last. We 
walked from one place to another till we found 
an old horse. We slept on the ground and we 
lived in a cave, like tramps, and he said he 
ought to be called ‘Weary Willy.’ ” 

“Ah, I see,” said Mr. Boise. “He’s a regu¬ 
lar joker, ain’t he! But wasn’t it pretty tough 
to wander around like that! He wasn’t mar¬ 
ried then, was he!” 

“No,” said Eddie; “he got acquainted with 
Aunt Em while we lived in the cave and they 
were married a little while before Archie and 
I went home.” 

“But before ye got her, wasn’t it pretty hard 
on ye to sleep on the ground with toads and 
snakes and mosquitoes crawlin’ over ye!” 

“Oh, no,” cried Eddie. “We had loads of 
fun every day, didn’t we, Archie!” 

“I should say,” returned Eddie’s little red¬ 
headed companion, speaking for the first time. 

“Archie ain’t so much of a talker as you be, 
is he!” remarked Mr. Boise. 


16 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“No. Uncle Weary says Archie has the 
brains and I have the tongue of the combina¬ 
tion.” 

They all laughed and Mr. Boise went on with 
his catechism. 

“Is your little dago ’dopted, too?” 

“Yes, we found him in that flood in Danton 
last summer, when we were going west in ‘ The 
Bat.’ ” 

“The BatV’ echoed the man. “You don’t 
mean you traveled in a fly in’ machine?” 

“No, it was the name of our car. Uncle 
Weary called it that because we went mostly in 
the night. ” • ' ’ W 

“Well, that’s a queer notion, too. I guess 
you’re a queer bunch anyway, ain’t you?” 

“Yes, I ’spect we are,” laughed Eddie. 

“What do ye call yer outfit this summer?” 
was the next question. 

“We call it ‘Allserene,’ and here she is,” 
said Eddie, as the dusty automobile rolled up 
to the steps. 


CHAPTER II 


GRANNY 

S HE was arranging* a skein of bright red 
yarn on her lap, seated in a low wicker 
chair, in front of a large tent, which had been 
for a week her home and that of her traveling 
companions. 

The green grass grew, soft as velvet about 
her chair, and the sun shining through green 
trees above her, made blotches of yellow on 
her white hair and trim gray gown. She cer¬ 
tainly made a charming picture, as she sat 
there alone, humming a little tune, with a sweet, 
contented expression on her old face. 

A slender fair-haired boy thought so, as he 
stole up behind her and put both hands over 
her eyes. 

“Guess who it is?” he said, trying to dis¬ 
guise his voice. 


17 


18 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Perhaps it is Tony, or Archie/’ she replied. 

“Guess again,” returned the boy. 

“Well, then, it must be Eddie.’’ 

The little boy laughed joyously, and threw 
his arms around her neck, exclaiming: “Oh, 
Granny, I do love you so. How did we ever 
get along without you?” 

“You’d better ask, how’d I get along with¬ 
out you,” she answered affectionately. “But 
perhaps you won’t love me so much when you 
know me better,” she went on. “My mother 
used to say, you must summer and winter peo¬ 
ple before you really knew them. Now, you 
are just summering me. Perhaps in the winter 
you’d sing another tune.” 

“Oh, I’m not a bit afraid,” said the boy, 
nodding his curly head emphatically. “You’re 
so sweet, Granny, I’m sure you’re just the same 
in winter.” 

She laughed and said: 

“Well, if you love me so much, perhaps you’ll 
hold this skein for me while I wind it.” 

“Sure I will,” said Eddie heartily, seating 


GRANNY 


19 


himself cross-legged on the grass before her. 

She arranged the skein on his outstretched 
hands, and began briskly to wind the bright 
yarn. 

“What’s this for?” asked Eddie, skilfully 
seesawing his hands to allow the thread to run 
smoothly. 

“Well, I think I’ll knit Tony a scarf, and if 
there’s enough yarn left, a pair of mittens for 
him or for your uncle.” 

‘ 1 Mittens in June ? How funny, ’ ’ laughed the 
boy. 

“In time of peace prepare for war,” she 
answered, smiling. 

“War,” echoed the child. “Is Tony going 
to war, and if he is, will he need red mittens!” 

“What a literal chap you are,” she said, 
laughing heartily. “Don’t you know a figure 
of speech w T hen you see it? Peace stands for 
summer, and war for winter in this case. Tony 
doesn’t need mittens now, but it’s a good plan 
to have ’em ready when he does need ’em.” 

“But I thought Tony was going south with 


20 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


you and Uncle Weary and Aunt Em next win¬ 
ter. Folks don’t need mittens in Florida, do 
they?” 

“Your uncle intends to start south rather 
late this year,” she answered. “He says he 
is tired of perpetual summer, and means to 
wait in the north till the first frost comes, and 
perhaps a snowstorm, so Tony will have plenty 
of time to wear his mittens, and be glad of 
’em.” 

“Yes, I see,” said Eddie, jumping up, for 
the yarn was now wound into a soft ball, and 
lay in the old lady’s lap, and she was casting 
stitches on to some large wooden needles for 
the new scarf. 

“I wish I was going south with you,” said 
Eddie rather wistfully. 

“What! You want to leave your dear father 
and mother, and your lovely home, where you 
are so happy?” she exclaimed, laying down her 
knitting and looking at him over the rim of her 
spectacles. 

“Oh, no, Granny, course not,” he hastened to 


GRANNY 


21 


say. “But I just hate to leave you and Uncle 
Weary, and Aunt Em, and Tony, and Archie, 
I just wisht I could keep all the people I love 
together. ’ ’ 

“Yes, I understand ,’’ she said gently, going 
on with her work. “But you know that can’t 
be done, and if it could be, it wouldn’t be the 
best thing for any of us. How would you like 
to have us camp down on your father’s lawn 
in Boston, for instance?” 

Eddie joined in her laugh at the idea, and 
then said: 

“I know it can’t be done, of course. Uncle 
Weary has to go south every winter, and I must 
go to school. But if I can’t have ’em all, I 
wisht I could take you home with me, Granny.” 

She smiled lovingly on the little boy kneel¬ 
ing by her side, as she said: 

“But you have one grandmother there now. 
You don’t want two of us, do you?” 

“Yes, I do, Granny; I want you. I love my 
grandmother in Boston, of course. But she’s 
different. Some way you seem to be more my 


22 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

kind of folks than she is. I can say anything 
to you.” 

Granny kissed his tanned cheek. 

“Yes,” she said, “I think you and I are 
the same sort. Besides, we have another thing 
to tie us together: you are an adopted son, and 
I am an adopted mother. I hope you love your 
adopted mother as much as I love my adopted 
son and daughter.” 

“Oh, Granny, I can’t tell you how much I 
love mother. Why, I love her so much it almost 
hurts sometimes.” 

“That’s the way I used to feel when I was 
a little girl and had my mother,” she said 
softly. 

They were silent for some time, when Eddie 
jumped up, looking down the shaded road which 
led away from the camp, and exclaimed: 

“I wonder why Uncle Weary and Aunt Em 
don’t come?” 

“They probably found good fishing,” re¬ 
marked Granny cheerfully. 

“I hope so,” said Eddie, in a rather dismal 


GRANNY 23 

tone. 4 ‘I’m awful hungry, and some trout ’ud 
taste pretty good, ’specially if you fried ’em, 
Granny. ’ ’ 

“Well, I’ve seen boys eat before, but I never 
saw your match,” she said, rising and tucking 
her work into a gay colored bag hanging on her 
chair. “Why, I don’t see how you can possibly 
be hungry now after such a breakfast as you 
ate,—a lot of strawberries, two eggs, ever so 
many slices of bacon, four rolls, and a big bowl 
of cocoa.” 

“No, you’re mistaken, only three rolls,” cor¬ 
rected the little boy. 

She laughed as she tied on a kitchen apron. 

“Well, I suppose growing boys must be fed 
when they’re hungry, even if it is in the middle 
of the forenoon.” 

“Oh, but, Granny, it’s a quarter to twelve!” 
cried the little boy, looking at his wrist watch. 

“My stars! Is that so?” exclaimed the little 
old lady, very much surprised. “I had no idea 
it was so late. I thought it was about ten or 
perhaps half past.” 


24 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

“My stomach’s a pretty good clock,” said 
Eddie. “And that said it was pretty near din¬ 
ner time a good while ago.” 

“Yon poor child. You really must be hun¬ 
gry. But we’ll hurry and have dinner by noon, 
so you won’t have to wait long.” 

“But aren’t we going to have trout, and 
won’t we have to wait for Uncle Weary and 
Aunt Em!” asked Eddie anxiously. 

“No, dear. Your Aunt Em made one of her 
nice stews last night. It’s in the fireless cooker 
now all ready for us. I’ll make a strawberry 
short cake. It’ll be ready in fifteen minutes. 
We’ll have plenty of other things to fill up 
with. Your Aunt Em said we were to have 
dinner at noon and not wait for them, for they 
didn’t want to come back at any particular 
time.” 

The little boy looked very much relieved, and 
Granny went on: 

“Now you may measure the flour for the 
short cake. Two cups, you remember, and a 
teaspoonful of baking powder to each cup, with 


GRANNY 


25 


a level spoonful of salt. Put out the bread 
board and rolling pin, and you’ll find a bottle 
of milk, and butter on a plate in the ice box. 
Don’t forget two small pie tins and a big 
spoon. Then you may light the oil stove, and 
put on the oven, and we’ll have the short cake 
ready in a 4 jiffy.’ ” 

She washed her hands and rolled up her 
sleeves while the little boy was getting these 
ingredients together, and walked briskly to a 
big walnut tree, on one side of the tent, where 
Eddie had neatly arranged all the necessary 
things for her convenience, on a small folding 
table, under the wide branches of the leafy tree. 

“How quick you work, Granny!” cried the 
little boy admiringly. 

“You mean ‘how quickly,’ don’t you, dear!” 

“Oh, yes, of course,” he said in rather a dis¬ 
couraged tone. “But seems if I couldn’t ever 
get my grammar right.” 

“ ‘Never can’ is better English,” she said 
quietly, as she rolled the soft dough into a 
round flat shape. She placed the two portions 


26 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


in the tin pans and Eddie put them for her in 
the little oven of the oil stove, which was al¬ 
ready hot, closing the door carefully. 

“Now you’d better run to the spring, and 
get some of that watercress your uncle told us 
about at breakfast,” said Granny, who was now 
washing her floury hands. “Hurry back to set 
the table,” she called after the boy. “And tell 
Tony and Archie to be ready for dinner in ten 
minutes.” 

She had removed all traces of her cooking 
when he returned and was preparing butter, 
slices of bread, and some young onions for the 
salad. 

“Set the table now, dear,” she said, “and by 
the time the whistle blows everything will be 
ready.” 

“Oh, I’m so glad,” said the hungry boy. 
“Seems if I just couldn’t wait another min¬ 
ute.” 

Just then a little brown dog, who had been 
sleeping in front of the tent, jumped up and 
began to bark. 


GRANNY 


27 


“Oh, there comes Uncle Weary and Aunt Em, 
after all,” shouted Eddie, running down the 
road to meet the newcomers. 


CHAPTER III 


CAMP ALLSERENE 

A UNT EM ran to a little canvas dressing 
^ room which her husband had ingeniously 
fastened to the big tent, and there brushed the 
dust from her clothes, washed her face and 
hands, and arranged her hair, and when Uncle 
Weary returned from the spring, where he too 
had freshened his toilet, they were all ready to 
sit down to the stew which the old lady brought 
steaming from the “tireless.” 

Eddie in the meantime had carried the heavy 
basket of fish to the spring and had placed them 
in a covered box to keep them safe from the 
dogs. 

When he came back, he remarked as he took 
his seat at the table: 

“What splendid luck you had to-day, Uncle 
Wearv.” 


28 


CAMP ALLSERENE 


29 


“Your Aunt Em had all the luck,” he grum¬ 
bled. “She’s bewitched the fish and makes 
them run from my hook to hers.” 

“Your uncle is too impatient to make a good 
fisherman, ’ ’ said Aunt Em. ‘ ‘ My uncle taught 
me all I know about fishing. He told me that 
one’s nerves ran down the line to the mouths 
of the fish. If the nerves were quiet the fish 
would bite. If they were ‘jumpy’ the fish would 
run away.” 

“Well, anyway, you brought home a nice 
mess,” said Eddie. “My, but won’t some fresh 
trout taste good?” 

“Trout!” echoed Uncle Weary. “You don’t 
catch trout in an Illinois stream. What you 
thinkin’ about?” 

“What do you catch then?” asked Eddie. 

“Bass and pickerel mostly,” he said. 

“Very good eating, too,” commented Granny. 
“Vermont hasn’t all the good things in this 
world. ’ ’ 

“Wait till you get to Colorado,” said Uncle 


30 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

Weary. “ You’ll find enough trout there to suit 
you.” 

“When do you think we’ll get there?” asked 
Archie. 

“Not very soon at the rate we’re traveling,” 
he returned. 

“We’ve been here about a week, Will. Don’t 
you think we’d better start soon?” asked his 
wife, rising from the table and tying a large 
kitchen apron over her pretty knickerbocker 
suit. Uncle Weary also left the table and be¬ 
gan to fill his pipe for his after-dinner smoke. 

“Guess we’d better take a vote on that prop¬ 
osition,” he drawled. 

“What do you say, mother?” he asked, turn¬ 
ing to the old woman. 

“I vote to go on,” she answered promptly. 
“We’ve had a nice time here. It’s a lovely 
spot. We’d enjoy it all summer if we stayed. 
But I like to carry out the plan I start with, 
and I think we’ll have to hurry a little, if we 
reach Kansas this summer, as we intended.” 


CAMP ALLSERENE 


31 


“Tony, do you want to move on now!” asked 
the young man. 

“Si, Si, Signor, I wish to go if you do,” an¬ 
swered the Italian eagerly. 

“Oh, have a mind of your own,” said Uncle 
Weary, dropping into a hammock. “I guess 
you want to go fast enough,” he went on, as 
Tony’s mouth widened into a grin which 
showed all his teeth. 

“How about you, Archie?” asked the young 
man. 

“I say let’s go,” said the boy decidedly. 

“And you, Eddie?” 

The little boy was moving nervously about 
and his blue eyes looked troubled. “Why, 
Uncle Weary, you see,” he began, “I don’t 
know what to say. I want to go and I want to 
stay.” 

“Yes, I see,” said the young man. “You’re 
a straddler. I suppose you were born that 
way, and you can’t help it, and somebody’s got 
to make up your mind for you.” 


32 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Why do you want to stay, Eddie?” asked 
Aunt Em. 

“Well, I want to go fishing, and I want to 
play ball with the village boys, and I hate to 
say good-by to the nice folks that come here 
evenings,’’ said the boy. 

“It is hard to say good-by to the people you 
like,” said Granny sympathetically. 

“Don’t say good-by,” broke in Uncle Weary. 
“It doesn’t do any good, and it makes you feel 
bad. ’ ’ 

“You know we always have a good time 
wherever we camp,” remarked Aunt Em. 

“Yes, I s’pose so,” assented the child dubi¬ 
ously. 

“Well, I guess the ayes have it,” said Uncle 
Weary. “We’ll start to-morrow morning.” 

Eddie was rather glad when this decision was 
made, for he was fond of being on the road and 
having new experiences, and it was his habit 
to be satisfied with any program arranged for 
him by his elders. 

The villagers had now found them out, and 


CAMP ALLSERENE 


33 


the campers had many visitors, especially in the 
evenings. Archie had brought with him his 
violin, which he played very well for a boy of 
his age, and Eddie had a flute. He had taken 
lessons of a good master, and as he was a 
natural musician, and was fond of practising, 
he made astonishingly good music for one so 
young. 

He and Archie had practised together a good 
deal, and many of their duets were well worth 
hearing. The villagers thought so and flocked 
to Allserene every evening to listen to their 
music and to dance on the grass to their lively 
strains. 

The Allserene party were very busy that 
afternoon, for the next morning they were to 
4 ‘pull up stakes and travel,” as Uncle Weary 
said, and they had to pack clothing, and buy 
food and entertain their usual visitors in the 
evening. 

Aunt Em thought it would be nice to give 
their guests some lemonade and cakes. So the 
boys were sent to the village for lemons of 


34 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


Mr. Boise, and sugar, and were told to be sure 
to buy plenty of small cakes. Uncle Weary and 
Tony put the car in fine shape to take the road. 

Granny and Aunt Em packed the suitcases, 
and when the boys returned everybody was 
ready to make the lemonade. They made a lot 
of it and set the fruit jars with the rich juice 
into the ice box to keep cool until it was time 
to add the water. 

Allserene was carefully swept, dead leaves 
and sticks were picked up from the grass, 
bright paper lanterns were hung in the branches 
of trees, making the place look very festive. 
Uncle Weary said any one would think they 
were going to have a Sunday-school picnic. 

The boys practised some new dance music, 
they all ate their suppers of bread and milk, 
and cleared away the dishes, and before the fire¬ 
flies appeared the first visitors arrived. They 
were a group of bashful, giggling boys whom 
Uncle Weary made to feel at home at once by 
asking them to help him light the lanterns. 
Soon others came, little girls in bevies, all 


CAMP ALLSERENE 


35 


dressed in white, with long braids of hair hang¬ 
ing down their backs. Then smaller children 
led by parents, larger girls and boys in pairs, 
and some older people without children. 

The space before the tent was presently filled 
with laughing, chattering villagers, and the 
scene was a very gay one, when the boys sat 
down on camp stools and began to play “The 
Arkansas Traveler.” The little children were 
the first to dance. Older ones followed, while 
some of them clustered around Allserene to 
chat with Granny, Aunt Em, and Uncle Weary. 

They were all having such a good time they 
would gladly have stayed there all night, but 
at nine o’clock, at a signal from Uncle Weary, 
the music stopped and Archie and Eddie began 
to serve lemonade and cakes. 

Newspapers were spread on the damp grass, 
rugs spread over them, making seats for the 
tired dancers. Pretty soon the lights began 
to go out, for the candles in the lanterns had 
been gauged to burn only two hours. 

The company took this as a gentle hint that 


36 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


the party was over, and saying a hearty good¬ 
night they flitted away through the summer 
night. 

By ten o ’clock the campers were sound asleep 
in Allserene. 


CHAPTER IV 


ON THE ROAD AGAIN 

A T six o ’clock the next morning a blast from 

k- Uncle Weary’s whistle woke everybody, 

and no one thought of taking a nap after that. 

They were all washed and dressed in a short 

time, and Annt Em, in a few moments had 

breakfast ready. As usual, it was a simple 

though hearty meal, of fruit, cereal, eggs, and 

toast, with milk and coffee for drink. 

Aunt Em always washed the dishes, as she 

said she knew they would then be clean, and 

then she packed them securely in suitcases 

which were stowed away in the trailer. 

Eddie could never get over his wonder at 

the unfolding and folding up of the tent. It 

always seemed a miracle to him, though he was 

now very familiar with the process, for he and 

Archie were allowed to help. 

37 


38 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


Granny too was never tired of watching both 
the setting up of the tent and putting it in 
the trailer. She said it reminded her of a 
“Jack in the box” when it rose suddenly from 
the cart and spread its wings out over the two 
beds inside. She had tried several times to 
describe the mechanism of this unique inven¬ 
tion in letters to her friends, but always gave 
it up. She said she was sure one would have 
to see it to get any just idea of its comfort 
and convenience. 

On the morning they left their pleasant camp, 
she watched Archie and Eddie at their ap¬ 
pointed task. They pulled the pegs from the 
ground, which held the guy ropes, placing them 
carefully in a bag. Then they helped to read¬ 
just the iron legs which held the beds in place. 

Uncle Weary and Tony folded the yellow 
canvas sides, lifted the two spring beds with 
their mattresses over the baggage which filled 
the box of the cart, the cover was fastened on, 
and Allserene was ready for the road by seven 
o ’clock. 


ON THE ROAD AGAIN 


39 


Granny, Aunt Em, and Uncle Weary sat on 
the back seat. Tony drove the car and the two 
boys sat by his side. They were very fond of 
Tony, and he of them, and when Uncle Weary 
allowed them to ride together they were all very 
much pleased. 

As usual the boys began to ask questions as 
they rolled along the smooth road. 

“What kind of a car has your father got?” 
asked Archie. 

“My father never saw a car but once, and 
that frightened him very much,” answered 
Tony, smiling. 

“Never saw a car,” echoed Eddie. “Don’t 
the tourists ever go through your town?” 

“No,” said Tony. “My home is in a little 
village high up on the side of a mountain. Only 
small horses and goats can climb the steep road 
to it, and my father never goes down to the 
city.” 

“Tell us about your home, Tony. Did you 
have a farm?” asked Eddie. 

“We do not live on farms in my country as 


40 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


they do here,’’ replied the Italian. “That kind 
of a life would be too lonesome for us. We 
live in villages with houses close together.’’ 

“Some folks have to be farmers, don’t they, 
Tony? How do you raise your food?” asked 
Eddie. 

“Each family has a little piece of ground out¬ 
side of the village, where they raise their own 
fruit and vegetables. The people go out to 
work on their farms during the day and come 
home at night.” 

Tony seemed very much pleased to be talk¬ 
ing about his dear far-away home, and smiled 
happily when Eddie remarked: 

“Well, I think that’s a nice way to do. You 
can all be together evenings, and with your 
friends and have lots of fun.” 

“Rut we are very poor in my village,” said 
Tony with a sigh. “Sometimes w^e have very 
little to eat, and my mother had rheumatism 
and could not work in the field or spin flax when 
I left home.” 


ON THE ROAD AGAIN 


41 


“Why don’t your folks come to this coun¬ 
try!” asked Archie. “No one goes hungry 
here.” 

“They would like to,” said Tony sadly. 
“But they have no money to travel with.” 

“But you came,” remarked Eddie. “How 
did you earn enough to get here!” 

The young fellow hesitated and looked away 
at this direct question, and then said in a low 
voice: 

“I did not earn it. I could not. There is 
no way to make money in my village. My 
uncle loaned me enough to buy some clothes 
and pay my way on the steamboat and railroad 
to his home in Danton. It was much money 
he loaned me. One hundred and fifty dollars. 
It will be a long time before I can pay him 
back. I send much that I earn to my people, 
to keep them.” 

“Why, I think it’s awful mean of your uncle 
to make you pay all that money to him,” said 
Eddie indignantly. Tony’s hands were on the 


42 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

wheel, and he said nothing, but his shoulders 
were lifted up an inch or two, and the boys con¬ 
cluded that he was of the same opinion. 

“Is your uncle rich?” asked Archie. 

“I don’t know. I think so,” said Tony. 

“Have you paid him anything?” was Eddie’s 
question. 

“Fifty dollars. It has taken three years. I 
am afraid my father and mother will die be¬ 
fore I can send them enough to come to this 
country. ’’ 

Tony spoke despondently, and sympathetic 
Eddie said impulsively: 

“It’s too bad, Tony. I’m awful sorry for 
you, and I mean to help you get a lot of money 
to send home, right away, so you won’t have 
to wait any longer.” 

Tony brightened at once. He had great faith 
in these two American boys, who had once 
saved his life, he thought, in a terrible flood. 

In his prayers he called them his guardian 
angels. He believed they could do miracles, 
and one was going to be performed now. 


ON THE ROAD AGAIN 


43 


“But how could you do that?” he asked al¬ 
most breathlessly, 

“Why, just as easy,” said the boy excitedly. 
“Pd write to my father all about you, and ask 
him to send you a hundred dollars to pay your 
debt, and send money to your folks, and 
Archie’s father will do the same, won’t he, 
Archie?” 

“I don’t know,” said the more cautious 
Archie. ‘ ‘ But I think he will if I write and tell 
him all about it.” 

“I mean to ask Uncle Weary to give some¬ 
thing, too,” said Eddie. 

He turned in his seat with the intention of 
settling the matter then and there. But Tony 
begged him to wait until they stopped for 
luncheon. 

He was very shy and sensitive and did not 
want to be present when the important matter 
was discussed. He stood in great awe of his 
master, and felt as though he would have to 
weep if Uncle Weary disapproved of Eddie’s 
generous plan. 


44 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

They began about noon to look for a suitable 
place in which to eat their luncheon, and finally 
stopped by a brook which looked clear and cold 
and ran near some large trees by the roadside. 

“Oh, can’t we hurry, Aunt Em!” cried Ed¬ 
die. “I never was so hungry in my life. Can’t 
I help serve the luncheon!” 

“You say that every day, Eddie,” laughed 
Aunt Em, “and we always hurry to feed you, 
for fear you will starve,” she went on, hand¬ 
ing him a small tin pail. “You may bring some 
water from the brook. Be sure you get it clean, 
and we’ll soon have luncheon ready.” 

The boys adored Aunt Em. She was so 
pretty and bright, and kind, and always pro¬ 
vided such good things to eat. No one knew 
how she managed to do it, but she never failed 
to have plenty of sandwiches, salads, boiled 
eggs, and hot chocolate in thermos bottles for 
luncheon, or something else just as good and 
nourishing. 

“Oh, Aunt Em, how splendid this lunch is! 


ON THE ROAD AGAIN 45 

I believe it’s the best one we ever had!” cried 
Eddie. 

“You say that, too, every day,” said Aunt 
Em. “Take another sandwich.” 

But at last even his appetite was satisfied, 
and he and Archie packed away the baskets and 
picked up bits of paper and other litter, leav¬ 
ing the place as clean as they had found it. 

Tony wandered away out of sight, and while 
Uncle Weary smoked his after-dinner pipe, and 
Granny and Aunt Em sat on camp stools in 
the shade, Eddie began eagerly to tell them of 
his plan to raise money to help Tony. 

“I know my father will give a hundred dol¬ 
lars, and Archie thinks his father will too, and 
we thought you’d give that much,” said the 
little boy confidently. 

Uncle Weary shook his head. “Worst thing 
you could do, for all of you,” he said. “If you 
want to get money for Tony, why don’t you 
earn it yourselves, and teach him to do the 
same!” 


46 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

“Why, Uncle Weary!” cried Eddie, much 
surprised. “How can we earn money ?” 

“You earned money selling berries on our 
first trip, didn’t you?” asked the young man. 

“Yes, but that was different,” argued Eddie. 
“I didn’t have any then, ’cept what I earned. 
Now I have all I want, and my father has such 
lots of it I know he’d give me what I asked 
for to bring Tony’s folks over here.” 

“Well, I call that begging,” said Uncle 
Weary, reaching for a stick to whittle while he 
talked. “You don’t want to be a beggar, do 
you?” 

This was a new idea to Eddie. He was silent, 
and looked rather perplexed and Archie asked: 

“How can we earn money now, Uncle 
Weary?” 

“What are your brains for, boys?” remarked 
the young man, squinting along the edge of bis 
whittled stick to see if it was smooth. “You 
want the use of my brains, and that’s as much 
begging as asking for money.” 

They all laughed, and after a moment’s 


ON THE ROAD AGAIN 


47 


thought Archie said, “I can’t think of anything 
I could do, except to get money by fiddling.” 

“Oh, that’s so, and I could dance and Tony 
could sing,” cried Eddie eagerly. 

“Well, I see your freight trains are slow, 
but they’re pulled in at last,” drawled Uncle 
Weary, rising and putting his pipe in his 
pocket. 

“What does he mean by freight trains, Aunt 
Em!” asked the puzzled Eddie. 

“Why, that’s his way of saying your minds 
work rather slowly,” she answered, also ris¬ 
ing. “But I think freight trains are good 
things. Very useful when they do arrive, and 
not half as apt to get off the track as express 
trains.” 

She looked laughingly at her husband, who 
grinned and said he supposed she thought he 
was an express, and he guessed the joke was 
on him, and Granny remarked that the freight 
trains had brought in an excellent idea and she 
was sure it could be made to work. 

“Why, yes,” cried Eddie, very much excited, 


48 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“we*can give shows and dances, and ask folks 
to pay for ’em ’stead of giving ’em free.” 

“Yes, that’s the idea,” said Granny, also 
very animated. “We can all help and make a 
lot of money.” 

“Oh, let’s begin to-night,” said Eddie, jump¬ 
ing up and down and clapping his hands. 

“Come on, folks,” called Uncle Weary from 
the car. “It’s time for us to be moving. You 
can plan for your show after we are on the 
road.” 


CHAPTER V 


PLANNING 

T HE usual cheerful bustle of starting was 
soon over, and the boys lost no time in 
telling Tony the new scheme. 

The soft-hearted fellow was much touched by 
the kindness of his new friends. His dark eyes 
filled with tears, and he could only look his 
thanks. He had a beautiful mellow voice, and 
could sing very charmingly the simple moun¬ 
tain songs of his own country. His shyness 
made him dread the idea of singing in public, 
but when the boys insisted that he must do 
his part he promised to try and to do his best. 

Eddie was much inclined to ask advice of 
their elders about arranging the program for 
the first show, but Uncle Weary said that he 
and Archie must manage the business alone. 


49 


50 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“You two are the proprietors and principal 
actors,” he said. “We three are the ‘supes.’ 
We’ll help, but you must tell us what to do.” 

“Will you do just what we tell you to do?” 
asked Archie. 

“Of course,” he answered rather incau¬ 
tiously, and then added, “provided you don’t 
ask anything unreasonable.” 

Granny and Aunt Em agreed to this arrange¬ 
ment, and two heads on the front seat were 
laid together for earnest consultation. 

Tony was a good driver, and kept a wary 
eye on the level road before them while he lis¬ 
tened to the planning for the important event, 
which the boys decided must come off that very 
night, if they camped near a village or a town. 
Eddie was so used to having others think and 
plan for him that he deferred constantly to 
Archie’s judgment in arranging details, and it 
was Archie who decided everything of impor¬ 
tance. 

To the New England eyes of Uncle Weary 
and Aunt Em the country through which they 


PLANNING 


51 


were passing looked wonderful and beautiful. 

Great fields of growing wheat and corn, 
stretching as far as the eye could reach, lay 
on both sides of the road like huge green car¬ 
pets, and the tourists could see that the soil 
was rich and black. 

44 I think the farmers here must be rich with 
such crops,’’ remarked Aunt Em. 

44 They are,” said her husband. 44 Most of 
them have automobiles, and send their boys 
and girls to college.” 

They rolled on and on through the prosper¬ 
ous country, constantly passing comfortable 
homes on great farms, until finally Aunt Em 
remarked. 

44 Well, it’s all very well to be rich and let 
Nature do everything for you. But I believe 
I’d get tired of this flatness. The country is 
tame and monotonous. It’s almost like being 
on the ocean, to see nothing but great stretches 
of green. I’d rather have one of our old Ver¬ 
mont mountains than a whole state of growing 
corn and wheat.” 


52 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


Granny smiled as she sang softly a couplet 
from an old Scotch song: 

“East or West, Hame’s best.” 

They lunched in a little grove near the home 
of a friendly farmer, who came up to their auto¬ 
mobile and chatted with them while they ate. 
He told them with pride that he had planted 
all the tine trees about them when he first came 
to that country forty years before. 

“It was nothin’ but prairie then,” he .said, 
“and we had to work like nailers to make a 
livin’. We had malaria to deal with. Every 
one of us had fever and ague. I don’t know 
how we did it, but I guess grit pulled us 
through. And now you see what we are,” he 
ended, waving his hand toward his handsome 
house and broad fields. 

“It’s certainly a fine country,” said Em po¬ 
litely. “I have never seen such splendid farms 
before.” 

“You from the east?” he inquired. 

“Yes, Vermont,” answered Uncle Weary. 


PLANNING 


S3 


“Well, now, that so,” returned the farmer, 
smiling. “I’m always glad to see genuine Ver¬ 
monters. That’s my native state. Left there 
when I was eighteen.” 

“You still love the old mountains, don’t 
you?” asked Em. 

“Why, yes, ’course I do,” he said heartily. 
“I go hack to ’em about every other year. It’s 
a fine state to go hack to, but this is God’s coun¬ 
try, you bet.” 

“Yes, but I believe your heart is still with 
the Green Mountains. ‘Once a Vermonter, al¬ 
ways a Vermonter,’ you know.” 

She had the last word, for there was no time 
for argument, which the farmer would have 
liked. Uncle Weary gave the word to start, 
Tony touched his cap to their host, they 
thanked the farmer for his hospitality, while 
the engine was getting started, and away they 
flew down the smooth highway. 

The weather was hot and muggy, which was 
good for the corn, the farmer had told them, 
and our party were glad to be in motion again, 


54 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

to enjoy the breeze made by rushing through 
the heated air. 

It was five o’clock when they stopped in the 
edge of a town which the Blue Book said had 
ten thousand inhabitants. Uncle Weary went 
to the doors of a number of houses, to inquire 
if they might camp on a vacant lot which looked 
very inviting, lying as it did between two small 
white houses. 

The lot had on it three fine trees and some 
shrubs, and the level ground was covered with 
close-cut green grass. 

“It’s an ideal spot for a camp,” said Granny. 
‘‘I hope we can have it.” 

‘‘We can,” said Em confidently. “You know 
Will has never been refused.” 

She was quite right. At one of the small 
white cottages, next to the desired lot, a little 
woman came to the door, and after glancing at 
the large clean automobile and the well-dressed 
people in it, she offered to telephone to the 
owner of the lot for permission the tall good- 
looking man had asked for. 


PLANNING 


55 


It came at once, and four pairs of experi¬ 
enced hands made ready in ten minutes their 
cloth home on the lovely spot. The wide tent 
was spread under the branches of a great oak 
tree which threw a cool shade over it and the 
green grass felt soft and pleasant under foot, 
and when the friendly little woman from the 
near-by cottage came over to tell them they 
might have water from her house and she would 
be glad to have them use her telephone, Granny 
remarked that they had fallen this time into a 
clover patch. 

‘‘Why, yes,” cried the enthusiastic Eddie. 
‘‘Isn’t it grand? I feel as though I had lived 
here all my life.” 

They had an early supper, for the boys 
wanted to have their first show that night. 
They had their program arranged, but there 
was a good deal to do to get ready for it. 

“What’s the first duty of this ‘Supe’?” asked 
Uncle Weary when they had finished eat¬ 
ing. 

“We want you to go and ask the owner of 


56 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

this lot if we can have a concert and dance here 
to-night,’’ said Archie promptly. 

“All right, ja supe must obey orders,” said 
Uncle Weary, looking round for his cap. 

“And you must tell him what the show is 
for,” put in Eddie. “Perhaps he wouldn’t let 
us have it if it was for us.” 

“A very good suggestion,” said Uncle 
Weary. 

“Yes, indeed,” added Aunt Em approvingly. 
“That’s very important, and your uncle will 
make it all right when he explains.” 

“How are you to let folks know about your 
show?” asked Granny. 

“We’ve got that all fixed,” answered Archie, 
as he brought out from his pocket a crumpled 
bit of paper. On it was written in a sprawling 
hand: 

Benefit To-night, 

CONCERT AND DaNCE. 

Free. Contributions. 

“We’re going to add one more line to tell 


PLANNING 57 

where the show is to be as soon as we know 
ourselves just what to say,” said Archie. 

“Why, that’s first-rate. It couldn’t be bet¬ 
ter,” said Uncle Weary heartily. “It’s right 
to the point, and tells the whole story.” 

He seldom spoke to them so approvingly and 

the little fellows were much pleased. Eddie 

# 

went on to say: 

“We want Aunt Em to write it on a piece 
of cardboard, ’cause she w r rites beautifully, and 
we want Uncle Weary to put it up in the post- 
office when he goes to the town. You know we 
have seen lots of notices like this in places 
where we’ve been, stuck up in the post-offices.” 

After a little consultation Granny agreed to 
go to the house of their friendly neighbor to tell 
her of their project, and if she approved, as 
they were sure she would, to ask her how to 
direct people to their show. 

Granny had a sweet voice, and such a quaint, 
charming manner, that the little neighbor was 
quite captivated and entered with great enthu¬ 
siasm into the scheme. 


58 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Why, that’s a lovely idea,” she cried. 
“And I’ll help you all I can. Just say in your 
notice the entertainment will be next door to 
Mrs. Madden’s grounds on Chestnut Street. I 
often have church sociables here. Everybody 
knows where I live, and you’ll have a good 
crowd. ’ ’ 

Aunt Em printed the notice in neat letters 
on a piece of pasteboard and Uncle Weary put 
it in his pocket with a list of things he must 
buy, and started off with Tony in the car. 

The owner of the lot proved to be a lawyer 
who received his visitor very politely. Uncle 
Weary had a very simple, direct way of making 
a statement, which made a very good impres¬ 
sion on the lawyer. He had already had by tel¬ 
ephone a glowing account of the travelers from 
Mrs. Madden and was quite ready to give his 
consent before Uncle Weary took him to the 
window to show Tony to him. 

The young Italian was sitting at the wheel 
in the handsome car which he had washed and 
polished on their arrival and which now showed 


PLANNING 


59 


no signs of its day’s travel. He happened to be 
looking up to the window where the two men 
stood and smiled broadly when he recognized 
his employer. 

“He’s a good-looking chap,” said the law¬ 
yer, “and I’ve no doubt a worthy one. You 
are quite welcome to have your show on my 
lot, and I hope it will make your boys a good 
start.” 

He shook hands cordially at parting, and 
Uncle Weary hastened to the post-office, where 
he soon had permission to nail on the walls 
at the entrance the important notice of the 
show. 


CHAPTER VI 


THE FIRST SHOW 

T HE boys had asked Granny and Aunt Em 
to sell lemonade and tea cakes and to help 
decorate the grounds for the evening perform¬ 
ance. 

They had with the boys been busy during 
Uncle Weary’s absence in hanging Japanese 
lanterns among the branches of the trees, ar¬ 
ranging an attractive tea table, and helping 
with the costumes the boys wished to wear. 

When Uncle Weary returned with the lemons, 
tea, sugar, and candles he had been told to buy, 
it was still daylight, for the June days were 
long. But all hands had plenty to do until it 
was dark enough to light the lanterns. Mrs. 
Madden was very kind and helpful. 

She insisted on loaning them her big china 

co 


THE FIRST SHOW 


61 


punch bowl, which did duty, she said, on her 
own lawn for festive occasions. 

She also directed the boys to bring from 
her storehouse a number of folding chairs and 
benches, and placed them in a half circle for 
the audience to sit on during the concert, and 
then, when everything else was ready, they all 
helped Aunt Em squeeze the juice from the 
lemons for the lemonade. 

A troop of boys and girls were the first to 
arrive and were received by Granny, Aunt Em, 
and Mrs. Madden, and afterward shown to seats 
on the benches by Uncle Weaiy, who had been 
asked to act as usher. 

The children were silent and bashful at first, 
but soon older people came and filled all the 
chairs and benches, while a number stood be¬ 
hind the last row, and the usual laughter and 
chatter of such an assemblage made a cheer¬ 
ful noise. 

Tony and the boys were dressing in the tent 
and were not to appear until it was time for 


62 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

the show to begin. At last Archie called in a 
loud whisper: 

“Uncle Weary, please come here.” 

4 ‘What is it?” asked the young man, answer¬ 
ing the summons. 

“We forgot to put our seats in a row by 
the reflector. They are soap boxes, behind the 
tent. Aunt Em covered them with cloth this 
afternoon. Please get them ready for us. IPs 
time to begin,” said Archie hurriedly. 

Uncle Weary started for . the boxes, but 
stopped when Eddie stuck out his curly head 
through an opening in the curtain to call him 
back for more instructions. 

‘ ‘ When we are all ready we want you to make 
a speech, Uncle Weary,” he whispered. 

“Oh, I can’t do that,” said the young man 
quickly. “Never did such a thing in my life.” 

“But you said you’d be a supe, and a supe 
has to obey orders,” said Archie, pushing Ed¬ 
die one side and speaking decisively. 

Uncle Weary grinned, and Aunt Em, who had 


THE FIRST SHOW 


63 


come up to them and heard the whispered con¬ 
versation, said laughingly: 

“There, Will, the boys have got you. You’ll 
have to take a dose of your own medicine. 
You’ll have to make the speech.’’ 

Uncle Weary made a wry face. 

“Well, if I must, tell me what you want me 
to say. I’ll make a botch of it, that’s certain.” 

“Oh, no, you won’t; you always talk beauti¬ 
fully,” said Eddie earnestly. “We just want 
you to tell the people what we are giving the 
show for, and if they like it we’d be glad to 
have them give us some money when we pass 
round the contribution plate.” 

“All right, I understand,” said Uncle Weary, 
in a resigned voice. “Anything else you want 
me to do?” 

“Oh, yes, I ’most forgot,” said Archie, 
thrusting out a piece of torn paper. “Please 
call the numbers on this program.” 

The young man laughed good-naturedly as 
he took the paper, and soon had the three soap 


64 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


boxes arranged under the big reflector Mrs. 
Madden had brought over, and which had been 
hung in such a way as to throw a bright light 
on the performers. 

The audience became quiet as the three ac¬ 
tors marched out from the tent and took their 
seats. The boys were dressed in white suits, 
with broad sashes made from red cheese cloth 
tied round their waists, and crossing their 
breasts, and carried their musical instruments 
in their hands. Tony had ingeniously contrived 
an Italian peasant’s costume out of very sim¬ 
ple material, and looked very handsome and 
picturesque as he took his seat at the head of 
the little half circle. 

He wore his knickerbocker traveling breeches 
and a white shirt, open at the throat, and tied 
there with a large flaming red necktie. 

Aunt Em had loaned him a pair of long white 
stockings which he wore with a pair of black 
slippers of his own, on which he had sewed 
some large buckles made out of pasteboard and 
covered with gilt paper. His costume was com- 


THE FIRST SHOW 65 

pleted by a small turban of red cheese cloth 
twisted on the back of his thick black curly 
hair. 

Granny said he looked very much like the 
picture she had seen when she was young, called 
the “Neapolitan Boy.” He was very much 
frightened, and his big black eyes looked wild, 
and his olive skin was almost pale. The boys 
were afraid he would not be able to do his 
part. 

The friendly audience received the perform¬ 
ers with hearty applause, and Uncle Weary 
began his speech. He did not seem at all em¬ 
barrassed, and, as usual, spoke very briefly and 
to the point. 

“I’m asked to tell you what this show is for,” 
he began. “Well, it’s a benefit for this young 
man,” pointing to Tony. “He came to this 
country three years ago when he was a boy, 
leaving his father and mother and young sis¬ 
ter at home in Italy. Now he wants to send 
for them, and we have promised to raise what 
money we can to help him to pay their passage 


66 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


over here. It’s all the idea of these boys,” 
pointing to Archie and Eddie. “The three of 
them are going to do the best they can to en¬ 
tertain you, and if yon are pleased with their 
program they would be glad to have you give 
them some tiling for the Tony Madalo Fund.” 

The audience applauded again, and Uncle 
Weary announced the first number on the pro¬ 
gram. It was a solo on the violin by Archie. 
The little boy was used to playing before audi¬ 
ences in his mother’s parlors, and on the plat¬ 
form at school, and did not feel nervous now. 
He played a simple piece very well and the 
company was much pleased, calling for an 
encore. He was used to this too, and after bow¬ 
ing like a professional, gave them a second 
number. 

Eddie was rather nervous when he was called 
on for a flute solo and made some mistakes, 
although he knew his piece perfectly and usu¬ 
ally played it correctly. But he looked so sweet, 
and so handsome, and was so evidently trying 
to do his best, that the audience was delighted 


THE FIRST SHOW 


67 


and showed their sympathy for him by loud 
applause and encore. He gave it with better 
success than his first effort and took his seat 
with red cheeks and shining eyes. 

“Tony Madalo will now sing an Italian 
song,” called out Uncle Weary. 

The poor boy rose to his feet, and opened 
his mouth to sing, but he was so terribly fright¬ 
ened he could not utter a sound. The little 
boys and girls in the audience giggled, and the 
blood rushed to Tony’s pale face. He looked 
appealingly to Uncle Weary, who returned his 
look with a stern frown. There was no help 
for him there. 

“Go ahead; you can if you try,” said the 
young man in a low voice, 

Tony was so anxious to please his master 
and so afraid of his displeasure that at last 
he summoned strength enough to begin to sing 
in a low trembling voice. The accompaniment 
of the instrument almost drowned his notes. 

“Louder,” called Uncle Weary sternly. 

Granny came to the rescue now. Standing 


68 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


by bis side, she whispered in Tony’s ear, 
“ Think of your father and mother and little 
sister. ” 

The words were exactly what he needed to 
turn his thoughts away from himself. He 
looked at her lovingly and smiled, and then 
began to sing in a high rich tenor voice a little 
Italian mountain song. 

The audience "was charmed. Most of them 
thought the little by-play was part of the pro¬ 
gram, and very cleverly acted. They called 
for song after song, and now that the ice was 
broken, and he had conquered his stage fright, 
he seemed to feel as though he was among 
friends and enjoyed singing as much as they 
enjoyed hearing him. 

He was very willing now to sing everything 
he knew, and finally gave them a beautiful 
yodel he had learned from a Swiss cousin at 
home. He had to give it a good many times, 
the people were so delighted with it. But at 
last Uncle Weary stopped him by saying that 
Italy had been on the stage long enough. It 


THE FIRST SHOW 


69 


was America’s turn now. Edward Taggart 
would perform a scarf dance. 

The little boy had been to dancing school in 
Boston, and had learned several very pretty 
dances. He had slipped away to the tent while 
Tony was singing, and now came out with a 
good many yards of pink cheese cloth wound 
round his slender body. Archie played a lively 
tune on his violin, and Eddie began whirling 
about and throwing the long scarf of cheese 
cloth into loops and festoons about him, his 
slim legs twinkling among the bright folds. 

The company seemed as much pleased by this 
performance as by Tony’s singing and kept the 
little fellow dancing until he was dizzy, and 
staggered to his seat, and Uncle Weary said: 

“That’s the end of this part of our program. 
We have things to eat and drink which we 
want to sell you, and afterward you will have 
a chance to dance on Mrs. Madden’s croquet 
ground, but before you leave your seats we will 
pass round a contribution plate. We want you 
to give just what you think the boys’ show is 


70 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


worth. If you think it isn’t worth anything 
or that you ought to be paid for listening to 
it, just tell us, and we’ll give you whatever 
you ask.” 

The people thought this was very funny, and 
laughed as they began to open bags and pocket- 
books and to put their hands in their pockets. 
Archie and Eddie passed between the rows of 
seats, and nickels and ten-cent pieces and quar¬ 
ters made a cheerful tinkle as they dropped on 
the metal. 

After that Granny and Aunt Em were kept 
busy selling lemonade, tea, coffee and sand¬ 
wiches, and cakes, and then for an hour the 
croquet ground was covered with dancing cou¬ 
ples at five cents a dance. 

At ten o’clock the candles in the lanterns 
began to die out. The boys stopped playing, 
and although many of the dancers wanted to 
stay longer, everybody understood that the 
show was over and began to troop away, and 
by half-past ten the Tony Madalo Company was 
eagerly counting the gains of its first show. 


CHAPTER VII 


NEW EXPERIENCES 

B EFORE going to bed that night all hands 
were busy for half an hour in putting 
things to rights and making ready for an early 
start the next morning. The chairs and tables 
and other borrowed articles were returned, 
suitcases were packed and several last touches 
were given to the automobile. 

Mrs. Madden was very enthusiastic about the 
show. 

“It was just grand,” she exclaimed. “You 
ought to have heard the people talk about it. 
They were so pleased about everything. You 
ought to stay and give it over again. You’d 
have a much bigger crowd and make a lot more 
money . 9 9 

The boys thought so too, and wanted to stay 
one more day. But Uncle Weary thought dif¬ 
ferently. 


71 


72 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“You’d better let ‘well enough alone,’ ” he 
said. ‘ ‘ The novelty would be gone for a second 
show. It would be like warmed-over food, and 
you know that’s not nearly so good as when it’s 
first cooked. There are plenty of towns just 
as good as this one, and now that you have 
had some experience, you will probably do 
much better next time.” 

The boys still thought they would never have 
the good luck to find again such a beautiful 
spot on which to camp, or such a kind Mrs. 
Madden to help them out. 

“Oh, yes, you will,” said Uncle Weary easily. 
“There are nice folks everywhere. Some one 
said in a book that ‘people were pretty much 
of a muchness,’ and you’ll find that saying is 
true.” 

Eddie was much disappointed to find that 
they had made so little money at their first 
benefit. 

“Only ten dollars,” he exclaimed. “Why, I 
thought we’d make a hundred. We’ll never get 
enough at this rate.” 


NEW EXPERIENCES 


73 


“It’s a good deal easier to spend money than 
to make it,” said Uncle Weary. “You get 
a much better idea of the value of a dollar 
when you earn it than when it’s given to 
you.” 

They gave a number of entertainments after 
this where they made more money than at their 
first venture. They found everywhere kindness 
and sympathy as soon as people saw them and 
understood the object of their “benefits,” and 
were glad to help with nickels and dimes, and 
with the help of their “supers” they soon be¬ 
came better organized than at first. 

After a good deal of discussion they had 
taken the name “The Trailer Minstrels.” 
Aunt Em had printed in neat capitals this name 
on a large piece of pasteboard, and under it 
the words, “Performance for the benefit of the 
Tony Madalo Fund.” 

This placard was fastened to a stake driven 
into the ground in front of their tent, and an¬ 
other one like it, with the location and hour 
of performance added, was usually nailed on 


74 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

the walls of the post-office wherever they hap¬ 
pened to be. 

Once they tried the plan of selling tickets 
from house to house and attracted attention by 
playing and singing in the streets. This worked 
very well, as they sold a good many tickets, as 
well as advertising their show. 

Tony was no longer shy, and seemed to en¬ 
joy singing and dancing, although he some¬ 
times grew tired of giving the yodel, which peo¬ 
ple were never tired of hearing. When he be¬ 
gan to sing it in his strong beautiful voice a 
crowd always gathered quickly, and many heads 
popped out of upper story windows to listen. 

Aunt Em objected to the street singing and 
dancing. She said she was sure the parents of 
the boys would not like it. Her husband did 
not agree with her and insisted that the 
Trailer Minstrels should manage their own af¬ 
fairs in their own way, so long as they were 
doing nothing harmful or disgraceful. 

He was willing, however, that Aunt Em 
should act as treasurer and take care of the 


NEW EXPERIENCES 


75 


money the shows brought in. Archie kept the 
records, setting down in a little book every 
penny the company paid out and took in. The 
little boy had a “turn” for business, and liked 
this task, but after they had given six shows, in 
as many different places, Eddie grew rather 
tired of it all and lost interest in the programs. 

They had made only seventy-five dollars, 
which was only a quarter of the amount re¬ 
quired. They had estimated that three hun¬ 
dred dollars was the least sum that would be 
needed to bring Tony’s relatives to this coun¬ 
try. Eddie was discouraged, and Aunt Em 
proposed that they should give up the benefits. 

“The work is too tiring,” she said. “After 
all, they are only little boys, and this is sup¬ 
posed to be a pleasure trip. It will be spoiled 
for Eddie, I’m afraid, if they keep on. Be¬ 
sides the Anti-Child Labor Society will be ar¬ 
resting us if we don’t look out,” she added 
laughingly. 

But Uncle Weary begged her not to inter¬ 
fere with the boys’ scheme. 


7G A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

“It’s their own idea, and Eddie thought of 
it first,” he said. “It would be a bad thing 
for his character to allow him to give it up 
because he is tired of it. He is naturally fickle 
and needs training in ‘sticktoitiveness.’ It 
would be the best thing in the world for him 
to be held to his job till it is finished.” 

“Well, I suppose you are right,” said his 
wife. “But couldn’t we reduce the number of 
shows to perhaps one or two in a week! That 
would make it easier for him, and he would 
still get his training in iDerseverance.” 

Her husband agreed to this compromise, pro¬ 
vided Archie would be willing to make it. 

“He is such a little bulldog to hang on to 
what he undertakes till it is finished, I’m afraid 
he’ll object,” he said. 

But the “Minstrels” soon found a new way 
to make money, which was much more to Ed¬ 
die’s taste than the benefits had been. They 
had reached the outskirts of a large town in 
Illinois where they decided to stay for a day 


NEW EXPERIENCES 


77 


or two, for Granny began to look tired and 
Uncle Weary said the car needed a good over¬ 
hauling at a garage. Aunt Em also was glad 
of a chance to do some mending and to 
straighten things up, as she said, and the boys 
wanted to buy some articles they thought they 
needed very much. 

So Allserene spread her yellow wings in a 
little meadow belonging to a Swede family, 
which gave them permission to stay there for 
a day or two. It proved to be a very comfort¬ 
able place for them, for they soon made the 
acquaintance of the family of boys and girls, 
who were quite well-bred children, and seemed 
to be glad to play with Archie and Eddie. 

They showed them a nice “swimming hole” 
in the river near by, and also told them they 
would take them to see a baseball game which 
would be played the next day in a park not 
far away. They could see the fence around the 
grounds from where their tent stood. 

The mother of the family came to call on 


78 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


the newcomers as soon as the tent was in place. 
She was a gentle, sweet-faced woman who spoke 
English brokenly. She explained that she had 
been in this country only a year and had not 
yet learned our difficult language. 

Her husband was a bookkeeper in a large 
store in the town, and rode in and out every 
day to his business on a bicycle. The children 
were going to school and doing very well. She 
hoped to learn to speak English from them and 
from her husband, who had been in this country 
longer than she or the children had. 

The family kept a cow and some chickens on 
their little place, and Aunt Em arranged with 
Mrs. Hansen to buy milk and eggs of her when 
she found these articles could be spared. 

Dunrood was a mile away from the encamp¬ 
ment of our travelers. It was a very pretty 
town of fifteen thousand inhabitants, and lay 
on very level ground which had once been the 
broad prairie. It had several handsome streets 
with large substantial business and dwelling 
houses on each side, most of them shaded by 


NEW EXPERIENCES 


79 


fine trees, which gave the town an old look, 
although it was only fifty years since the first 
house was built there. 

In the evening Uncle Weary proposed to take 
his party in the car to the town to get some 
ice-cream. Granny decided to stay at home and 
rest, and the others went without her, taking 
along with them two of the Hansen children, 
Eric, a boy of ten, and his little sister Norda, 
eight years old. She had large solemn blue 
eyes, and a very white skin, and wore her flaxen 
hair in two little pigtails down her back. 

She made a very quaint little figure in her 
foreign-looking gown with its short waist and 
full skirt as she sat on the edge of her seat 
very silent and scared, and holding fast to her 
brother’s hand. 

They all ate ice-cream in a drug store, and 
then, finding all the shops closed so they could 
not buy anything that evening and as the 
streets were bright with electric lights, they 
drove about the town for half an hour and then 
went home to Allserene, and to bed, for all 


80 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

of them were unusually tired after a very full 
day. 

The next morning they left Granny at home 
again, to keep house, and to rest, and all the 
others went to town in the car with Uncle 
Weary. Their plan was to leave the car for 
a day or two at a garage for repairs. Then 
they were all to visit stores and shops to buy 
what they wanted, and afterward to walk home. 
They did not carry out this plan, however, for 
a very unexpected event happened which turned 
their thoughts and actions quite in a new direc¬ 
tion. 

They were strolling on the main street, look¬ 
ing into the windows of stores and admiring 
the handsome public buildings they came to, 
when they saw a little ways ahead of them, in 
front of what seemed a small hotel, a large 
group of people filling up the sidewalk com¬ 
pletely and swarming over the tiny lawn just 
before the hotel. Every one in the crowd was 
looking at an open automobile standing in the 
street in front of the hotel. 


NEW EXPERIENCES 


81 


“What can be tlie matter? Do you suppose 
there lias been an accident?” asked Aunt Em 
anxiously. 

“WVll soon see,” answered Uncle Weary as 
the party hurried on to join the outskirts of the 
crowd. There were so many packed in a mass 
before them that no one but tall Uncle Weary 
could look over the heads of the people to see 
wdiat was going on. 

4 ‘It’s not an accident,” he repeated to his 
wife. 4 4 There seems to be a load of circus 
people in the auto. Clowns, I should say. 
They’re dressed up in ragamuffin style with 
painted faces, and false hair and whiskers, and 
there’s one woman in fashionable clothes, with 
very red lips and cheeks, and a chalk-like skin. 
She looks like a big doll.” 


CHAPTER VIII 


MAKING MOVIES 

“/^AN we get through the crowd and see 
them, Uncle Weary?” asked Eddie ex¬ 
citedly. 

‘‘ Yes,” he said, for he believed that children 
should have the front row in a crowd where 
there was something interesting to see. 

“Don’t push, dear,” cautioned Aunt Em. 
“Just slip into cracks between people, very 
quietly, until you are near enough to see.” 

“And if you don’t find us again afterward,” 
added Uncle Weary, “don’t wait for us, but 
go ahead and do your trading, and walk home 
when you are through. You know the way, 
don’t you?” 

The boys were sure they wouldn’t have any 

trouble in finding the road back to “Allserene,” 

and quickly disappeared in the crowd. 

82 


MAKING MOVIES 83 

Tony was short, and could not see over the 
heads of the people, so Uncle Weary suggested 
that he also should look out for himself. 

He was slender and agile and knew how to 
make his way in a crowd, and he too soon found 
himself in the front row of spectators by the 
side of the two boys. 

A pathway about three feet wide from the 
automobile at the curb to the steps of the hotel 
was kept cleared by a shouting, pushing, ex¬ 
cited little man in a white sweater, who seemed 
to be in charge of affairs. The boys could 
now see the strange-looking people in the auto¬ 
mobile and watch the photographer adjust his 
camera on a long-legged tripod. They had no 
idea what was going on until they heard some 
one near them tell another person that some 
moving pictures were about to be made and 
that the actors sat in the automobile. 

Presently, when the photographer was ready, 
the little man in the white sweater gave some 
directions in a loud voice to his actors. 

“Now listen,” he began, “I don’t want no 


81 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

foolin’. Just attend to business, every one of 
ye. WeTe late now and we haven’t got any 
time to lose. Keep yer eyes and yer ears 
open and do just what I tell ye, if ye want to 
get yer pay. Dick Hite, come here, till I tell 
ye what ye’re to do.” 

A slouching man in ragged clothes and 
painted face came forward and the manager 
said roughly: 

“Now I want ye to get behind that pillar on 
the porch, and when Miss Swanton comes out 
of the door you are to peep out and leer at 
her. Understand? Leer at her, leer! None 
of yer sour looks, mind ye. This is yer last 
chance. I ain’t goin’ to let ye spile no more 
films like ye did yesterday. If ye can’t obey 
orders ye can clear out.” 

Dick looked sullen, but said nothing and took 
his place behind a pillar. 

“Now, Miss Swanton,” said the little man 
respectfully, beckoning to the automobile. 

A fashionably dressed young woman stepped 
to the ground and walked to the hotel. Her 


MAKING MOVIES 


85 


face was heavily painted white and red, and 
her eyebrows were very black. She wore a 
jaunty hat with a long red plume and carried 
in her hand a white parasol. 

“You set in the parlor till I whistle,’’ said 
the manager, stepping to her side and speaking 
politely. 

“I’ll be ready soon as I find some kids for 
the snow.” 

She nodded and walked into the hotel, while 
the manager hastened to the automobile and 
took a paper bag from a box which was fas¬ 
tened behind it and carried it in his hand while 
he looked over the crowd of spectators with 
a practised eye. 

“Is that the queen?” the boys heard one 
man ask another as the painted woman disap¬ 
peared. 

“Yes, you might call her that,” was the an¬ 
swer from some one who seemed to understand 
what was going on. 

“She’s the star, and she bosses them all.” 

“Yes, I see. I’ve heard about them star 


86 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

movie actors / 9 said the man who had asked the 
question. 

“They get big pay, don’t they?” he went on, 
still seeking information. 

“You bet they do,” was the answer. “Some 
of ’em get bigger salaries than the President 
of the United States gets.” 

“That so?” said the questioner. “Well, if 
this one’s a specemine, they ain’t worth it.” 

There was laughter in the crowd at this 
speech which seemed to voice the general opin¬ 
ion, and there was considerable rather unfavor¬ 
able comment about the looks of all the actors, 
while the fussy little manager was walking up 
and down the line, trying to find suitable boys 
to do his stunt. 

“I’ll give three dollars apiece to two smart 
kids that’ll do this job right,” he announced. 

“Here, mister, let me do it,” called out a 
little fellow, raising his hand. But the man¬ 
ager had his eye on Archie’s bright face, and 
stopping before him he said: 


MAKING MOVIES 


87 


“Yon look smart enough to do the trick, kid. 
You want to earn some money!” 

“Yes,” replied Archie quickly. “And here’s 
Eddie. You said ‘kids,’ didn’t you!” 

“Sure,” said the man. “It takes two. I’ll 
give each of you three dollars if you’ll do the 
stunt all right. Not a penny if you don’t, you 
understand. You must do as you’re told on 
the moment, and do it right, no fumbling.” 

“Yes, sir, we will,” said Eddie in his clear 
piping voice. 

The man glanced at the boy’s eager face, 
and seemed satisfied. 

“Well, I guess you’ll do,” he said, and tak¬ 
ing from a big bag in his hand two smaller 
ones, he gave one to each boy and told them 
to go into the hotel and get out of an open 
window they would find in the hall on the sec¬ 
ond floor, and, sitting on the floor of the roof 
of the porch, behind a wooden painted sign, 
they must scatter the stuff in the bags when 
they heard the word ‘ 6 snow. ’ ’ 


88 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“ Think you understand ?” asked the man. 
44 And can you do the trick quick as lightning 
Not a minnit too soon or too late. Three dol¬ 
lars each if you do it right. Not a cent if you 
don’t.” 

The boys nodded, and Archie said to Tony: 

‘ 4 You’d better stay right here till we come 
' back. ’ ’ 

Tony said he would wait for them, and the 
boys raced into the hotel and were out on the 
roof of the porch and looking down on the 
crowd in an instant. 

4 ‘Well, I see you are quick enough,” said the 
manager, looking up at them. “Now you see 
that you do the stunt on time. Keep your eyes 
open and remember to scatter the stuff kind 
of even like when you see me behind the camera 
and call out ‘snow.’ ” 

“Yes, we understand. We’ll do it all right,” 
said Eddie. 

The manager then turned to Tony and asked: 

“You an Italian!” 


MAKING MOVIES 89 

“Si, Signor,” said Tony respectfully, taking 
off his cap. 

“Can’t ye speak English?” asked the little 
man impatiently. 

‘ ‘ Oh, yes, mister, ’ ’ Tony hastened to say. He 
always forgot to speak English in moments 
of excitement. 

“Well, d’ye want to earn some money?” 

“Oh, yes, mister, I do,” replied the Italian 
breathlessly. 

“Well, you’ve got the look of the part I want 
done all right, and if ye act it well I’ll give ye 
five dollars.” 

The man spoke in a business tone, and Tony 
showed in his beaming face that he was only 
too willing to try. 

“Well, you stand here and wait, and when 
we get through with this stunt I’ll come and 
get you.” 

Tony said “All right” in very good English, 
and the busy man hurried away to give other 
necessary directions. 


90 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Put your machine here, Pete,” he said to 
the photographer, pointing to a spot on the side¬ 
walk. 

Pete looked surly and said nothing, but he 
moved his camera, and began to joke with a 
young girl standing in the crowd. 

“Here! None of that foolin’,” said the man¬ 
ager angrily. “You ’tend to business, young 
man. That’s what ye’re here for.” 

“You ’tend to your business, and I’ll ’tend 
to mine,” returned the photographer. 

“All right, Pete,” said the manager good- 
naturedly. “I didn’t mean no harm. But we 
got to get a move on us if we do all our stunts 
to-day.” 

“Well, I’m ready, go ahead,” said Pete, with 
his hand on the handle of the camera. 

The little manager took his position on one 
side and blew one note on a whistle. This 
was evidently a signal for action, for the hotel 
door opened, and Miss Swanton walked out in 
her out-of-door wraps and hat and stood on 
the edge of the porch. The photographer, with 


MAKING MOVIES 91 

his camera trained on her, turned a handle 
steadily, and at the instant the actress turned 
her face up to the sky the manager called out 
“snow,” and down fell a shower of bits of 
white paper, which looked like snowflakes. 

The ragged, rough man behind the pillar 
peeped out at the actress, according to instruc¬ 
tions. But the expression on his face did not 
suit the manager. He blew twice on his whistle, 
which was a sign to the photographer to stop 
his machine. 

“That ain’t no leer, Dick,” he said impa¬ 
tiently. “You look like you was goin’ to Sun¬ 
day-school. Now you’ve spiled two hundred 
feet of film. I can’t stand that, ye know.” 

“I can’t help it, boss,” said the poor man, 
beginning to cry. “I ain’t had no breakfast 
this mornin’ and my wife’s sick abed and the 
baby’s got the croup.” 

“That so, Dick,” said the manager kindly. 
“Well, course you can’t do comedy this mornin’. 
Here’s a quarter, go to a restaurant and get 
somethin’ to eat. I’ll give ye another job when 



92 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

ye get back. We’ll be down tlie street at a 
store they call The Emporium.” 

Dick disappeared with a grateful look on his 
face, and the photographer said, 4 4 What’ll ye 
do now, Sam? We hain’t got time for ye to 
drill a new man.” 

44 Guess I’ll have to do the trick myself,” 
said Sam. 4 4 You can run the thing without 
me for a minute, can’t ye, Pete?” 

44 Sure,” said Pete briskly. 44 ’Twon’t take 
more’n a minute. Here, put on my coat wrong 
side out, and some one in the crowd’ll lend ye 
an old hat.” 

Sam pulled off his sweater, put on the coat 
which Peter had turned for him. A man in 
the crowd handed him an old hat with the 
brim turned down looking disreputable enough. 
A matted wig was fished out of the auto and 
the dapper little man was transformed into a 
very tough-looking tramp. 

He dodged behind the pillar. The actress 
took her pose. Sam put on a horrible leer as 


MAKING MOVIES 93 

lie looked out at her, which made the audience 
roar. Pete cranked the machine and the scene 
was over in a few seconds. 

“At the Emporium next,” announced the 
manager. 

The crowd melted at once, most of them rac¬ 
ing down the street to find, if possible, places 
in the front ranks to watch the next act in 
front of a department store. 

The manager paid Archie and Eddie and told 
them hurriedly he would like to have them help 
him again in the afternoon with another stunt. 

“I ain’t got time now to tell ye about it,” 
he said, “but if ye will come back to this hotel 
this afternoon about two o’clock and wait on 
the porch for me I’ll see if ye’ll do. If ye 
can ye’ll get my money. And you too,” he said, 
turning to Tony, “come with these boys, and 
I’ll tell ye what I want.” 

He hurried to the waiting automobile and 
left the young Italian and the boys much inter¬ 
ested and excited. The irascible little man had 


94 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


now won their hearts by his kindness to the 
unfortunate Dick, and they were all anxious to 
hurry home to tell the wonderful adventure 
and get permission to return in the afternoon. 

“I like his treating Dick so kindly,” re¬ 
marked Aunt Em. “A man like that couldn’t 
do you any harm even if he is rough.” 

Just then the Hansen boys came over to All¬ 
serene to invite the campers to go with them for 
a swim before dinner. Uncle Weary and Aunt 
Em with Tony joined the party in their bathing 
suits, for the river was only a few yards away 
from their camp. The “swimming hole” was 
a large pool made by a bend in the river, and 
was furnished with several diving boards, a 
pier for fishing, and two boats tied to stakes 
on the river bank. 

Archie and Eddie ran forward with shouts of 
delight when they saw the diving boards, and 
their white legs were soon twinkling in the 
air above the cool water. The Hansen boys 
were also good swimmers and divers, and the 
four boys had a gay rollicking time chasing 


MAKING MOVIES 


95 


each other head over heels from the diving 
boards while the elders enjoyed a more quiet 
bath. Eddie was enchanted with the place, and 
said he wanted to stay there all summer. 


CHAPTER IX 


TONY MAKES A HIT 
7TER dinner Tony and the boys went 



back to the hotel as they had promised and 
met the little manager, who came on to the 
porch at the appointed hour. He had a tooth¬ 
pick in his mouth, having just finished his din¬ 
ner, and seemed better natured than he had 
been in the morning. 

“Well, I see you’re here on time,” he said. 
“Now for business. What’s your name 1 ?” he 
asked the Italian. 

“Antonio Madalo,” answered the young man 
in a low tone. 

“We call him Tony,” said Eddie. 

“That’s better,” said the manager. “Well, 
Tony, think you can crank a street piano and 
pound your wife over the head when you get 
drunk?” 


96 


TONY MAKES A HIT 


97 


“But I have no wife, Signor, and if I had 
one I would not whip her,” said Tony, looking 
very much distressed. 

The manager laughed heartily. “You’re a 
softy all right,” he said. “Don’t ye know what 
acting is! You’ve been to the theater, haven’t 
you !’ ’ 

“Yes, he knows. He didn’t just think at 
first,” said Eddie, speaking for his friend, who 
was blushing and looking very much embar¬ 
rassed. 

“Think he has gumption enough to do the 
trick!” asked the man, turning to Eddie. 

“Yes, of course, he can. He’s awful smart. 
Besides, he wants to earn all the money he can 
to bring his folks to this country. And Archie 
and I are working for that, too,” said Eddie 
earnestly. 

‘ ‘ That so ! ” said the manager kindly. ‘ ‘ Well, 
I call that a pretty good stunt for two kids 
like you.” 

“What do you want us to do! And what 
will you pay us!” asked Archie. 


98 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

“ Hello, I see you’ve got your business man¬ 
ager along with you, ’ ’ said the manager, laying 
his hand on Archie’s shoulder. “Can you boys 
swim and dive and do stunts in the water? You 
look like you could.” 

“ Yes, ” said Archie. i i Eddie’s the best diver 
wherever we go.” 

“Don’t you live in this town?” he asked. 

“No, we are just traveling in an auto and a 
trailer. ’ ’ 

The little man rubbed his hands together and 
chuckled. 

“Well, I call that good luck,” he said. “I’ve 
been lookin’ for that kind of an outfit for a 
long time. You’re travelin’ with your father 
and mother, I suppose.” 

“No,” said Archie. “We are with Uncle 
Weary and Aunt Em.” 

“I see,” said the manager, scratching his 
head reflectively. “S’pose he’d let me put his 
outfit in a movie if I paid him good money?” 

“I don’t know,” answered the boy. “You’ll 
have to ask him. ’ ’ 


TONY MAKES A HIT 


99 


‘‘Where is your camp!” asked the man¬ 
ager. 

Archie told him they were encamped in the 
suburbs of the town near a big swimming hole 
by the river. 

“By gum! That’s just where we’re goin’ 
this afternoon for some water stunts,” said the 
manager. “And there’s where I want you boys. 
I don’t know what I’m going to do for my old 
woman. My star hates the water and says she 
won’t take the part. I’ll have to do the stunt 
myself if I can’t get anybody else. I must have 
good actin’ in the part.” 

“Perhaps Granny would do it,” suggested 
Eddie. 

“Who’s Granny?” asked the man. 

“Oh, she’s our ’dopted grandmother. She’s 
going along with us.” 

“But she’s old, I suppose. She couldn’t do 
stunts in the water, could she!” 

“Oh, yes, I believe she could,” said Eddie. 
“She was in a flood in Ohio last year and pretty 
near drowned.” 



100 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Besides,’’ added Archie, “she wants us to 
make all the money we can for Tony.” 

“Well, you’re a pretty interestin’ bunch, I 
guess, all right,” said the manager, “and if 
I can make a dicker with your folks I’ll think 
I’ve struck good luck.” 

He then told the boys to meet him at the 
swimming hole at four o’clock that afternoon. 
After their stunts there he hoped to induce 
Uncle Weary also to serve him. He took Tony 
with him to dress him for the part he was to 
play and told the boys where to find them on 
the street. They hurried to the place and 
waited on the curb until the auto of the man¬ 
ager came up with the actors in it dressed for 
the parts they were to play. 

The boys hardly knew Tony, his costume and 
make-up had changed him so much. His clothes 
were like those an Italian peasant wears on 
the stage in a play—knee breeches, buckles on 
his shoes, a short jacket with many rows of 
buttons and on his head a red turban. His face 


TONY MAKES A HIT 


101 


was painted white with red spots on his cheeks, 
and his eyebrows were made very black and 
thick. 

His experience with the “ showV’ he had 
taken part in on the way had given him con¬ 
fidence and he was not afraid to act before an 
audience. He looked very sober and earnest 
as he took his place by the side of a street 
piano and waited for instructions. A young 
girl dressed like an Italian peasant came from 
the auto and stood beside him. 

“Now we’ll have a rehearsal before the crowd 
gets here so you’ll understand what you have 
to do,” said the manager to Tony. “This girl 
is your wife. You are to crank the machine 
while she goes round with her plate to collect 
money from the crowd. When she comes back 
and looks scared of you, you must put on an 
awful cross face and when you count the money 
and find only a few pennies you must strike her 
in the face. She will cry and you must beat 
her with your fists and knock her down.” 


102 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


Tony looked distressed, and shook his head. 

“I cannot strike a woman, Signor,” he said 
in a trembling voice. 

“Why, you booby! It’s only acting. You 
don’t have to hurt her, you know. You can 
just pretend to strike hard, like this,” pelting 
the girl with soft blows which looked very 
severe. 

She was an actress and knew what to do, and 
sank to the ground as though stunned. She 
was very much disgusted with Tony’s coward¬ 
ice, and said as she rose: “He can’t do the 
trick, boss. He ain’t no actor. You can’t do 
nothin’ with greenhorns.” 

“Well, I don’t know what to do, Sadie,” said 
the little man, looking discouraged. “Jones 
and Morse ask such big pay I can’t afford ’em. 
I have to pick up any one I can find that looks 
like he could act. I thought this young fellow 
would do till I could find a professional. I’ll 
have to do the trick myself, I suppose.” 

“You?” she cried scornfully. “With that 
Irish mug ? How could you play dago ? ’ ’ 


TONY MAKES A HIT 


103 


They talked as though Tony had no ears or 
could not understand them. But he understood 
and was stung by their contempt. He was very 
imitative and knew he could perform the act 
better than the manager had done it. 

‘ 4 I’ll try, Signor,” he said quietly, doubling 
up his fist. 

“All right, try it,” said the manager encour¬ 
agingly. “I’ll bet on ye.” 

The girl came up to him with her pennies. 
Tony scowled at her fiercely, dropped the 
money into his pocket and gave her a soft blow 
in the face, with great apparent fury, and when 
she wept he beat her and knocked her down 
in true brute husband style. 

“Hooray!” shouted the little manager. 
1 ‘ That’s fine! I couldn’t do the trick better my¬ 
self. Now the next act’s a fight. S’poseyecan 
fight all right if a half dozen men tackle ye?” 

Tony’s eyes shone brightly and he showed 
all his white teeth. 

“I can fight men , Signor,” he said in very 
good English. 


104 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


‘ 6 Good word. You ’re the feller for me, ’ ’ said 
the little man with a delighted grin. “ We might 
as well have a rehearsal right now,” he went 
on, motioning to the two men who were in the 
automobile. 

By this time a dozen or more spectators had 
collected on the sidewalk to see what was go¬ 
ing on. They were what the manager wanted, 
to appear to take part in the scene with Tony. 
Half a dozen men very willingly stepped for¬ 
ward at the manager’s request and he explained 
to them that the fight was to seem very fero¬ 
cious, but in reality it must not hurt any 
one. 

He had some doubts about Tony’s ability to 
carry out these instructions, but finally he made 
him understand that he would get no pay unless 
he did. 

“Now we’ll go through the whole business 
again,” he announced. “Remember, when you 
see the girl fall you all rush in, two of you 
pick her up and seat her on the curb. The 


TONY MAKES A HIT 


105 


rest of you pitch into Tony. He puts up a stiff 
fight with the whole crowd at first, but at last 
Dick here will fight alone with him and they 
will go at it nip and tuck. Dick will get Tony 
down, with his knee on Tony’s chest, when the 
girl will run up and pitch into Dick and drive 
him off. Then Tony and his wife will go off 
together with his arm round her.” 

“Can you do all that?” he asked Tony. 

“Si, Signor, I can,” said the Italian. 

“When I whistle everybody get ready,” said 
the manager. “And don’t be too slow or too 
fast when I call out.” 

Everybody stood at attention, and he shouted, 
‘ ‘ Crank! ’ ’ 

The girl stood by his side and Tony began 
to turn the crank of the street piano. 

“Money,” he said next, and the girl took a 
cup from the top of the piano and passed it 
round among the spectators, who had been in¬ 
structed to appear to drop in coins. 

“Return,” shouted the manager. 


106 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

She walked back to Tony and looked in bis 
face with a beseeching expression. 

“Scowl and strike,’’ yelled the little mai 

Tony performed his part to perfection. 

“Cry,” said the manager. 

“Beat her,” was the next command, and in 
a moment she was lying on the ground. 

“Rush in,” was the next command. 

Tony proved to be an excellent actor and 
played his part with great spirit and natural¬ 
ness. The manager was much pleased, and even 
the actress said, “He wasn’t so bad.” 

“Everybody get ready for the machine,” 
called the little man. 

Pete placed his camera in a position to com¬ 
mand the acting, and once more the exciting 
scene was enacted. It was all over in a few 
moments. There had been no blunders and 
Tony was given a new five dollar bill. 

“Be on hand this afternoon with the boys 
and I’ll give ye another job,” said the little 
man as he hurried away. 


TONY MAKES A HIT 


107 


Tony could scarcely believe bis eyes when be 
looked at bis bill. It was incredible to earn so 
much money for the little act which bad just 
been fun for him. 

The three were much excited when they 
reached the camp and told of Tony’s success. 
Granny put his money away with the six dol¬ 
lars the boys had been paid in the morning, 
very much pleased that the Madalo fund had 
been so much increased. 

“We certainly have struck ‘ile’ this time,” 
remarked Uncle Weary. ‘‘But I’d like to know 
when the rest of us are going to have a chance 
to pick money off the bushes.” 

‘ 4 This very afternoon,” exclaimed Eddie. 
“The man said he wanted to put our camp into 
a movie if you were willing. And he wants 
Granny in a drowning scene in the swimming 
hole.” 

“Well, the fellow has nerve,” began Uncle 
Weary. But Aunt Em interrupted him by say¬ 
ing she thought it would be fun to be in the 


108 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

movies, and Granny said nothing would please 
her more than to be able to earn some money 
for the “fund.** 

“But you can’t go into the water and be 
hauled round in a rescue scene,” said Uncle 
Weary. 

“Why not? I lived through the real thing, 
didn’t I, at Danton last year? I’m strong and 
spry, if I am old. The water is warm. It 
wouldn’t hurt me a mite.” 

“Well, I give up,” said Uncle Weary, laugh¬ 
ing. “I supposed of course you’d think such 
publicity was out of the question, and here you 
want to be seen by thousands of people. 
There’s no accounting for women.” 

“But, Will, nobody would recognize us and 
just think of the money we could earn,” said 
his wife. 

“All right, if that’s the way you look at it, 
I’m willing,” he said. “It’s not a bad experi¬ 
ence for the boys and it won’t hurt the rest of 
us, I suppose.” 


TONY MAKES A IIIT 109 

“I hope the boys’ parents won’t object,” 
said Em. 

“They won’t object to anything we let them 
do,” said her husband. “There’s no disgrace 
in their working for the movies.” 

“That’s what I think,” said Granny. “And 
if it’s no disgrace for them it can’t be for us.” 

“Well, have it your own way,” he said, 
shrugging his shoulders. “I’m in the minority, 
I see.” 

When the movie car arrived at the appointed 
hour they were all ready, the boys and Tony 
in bathing suits, and the others waiting to be 
told what they were to do. 


CHAPTER X 


GRANNY AS A MOVIE STAR 

T HE little manager introduced himself as 
Mr. Fox and, seating himself on the stool 
Uncle Weary offered him, remarked: 11 Well, 
Mr. Williams, I’ve come to try to ring you into 
my little game if I can. I s’pose your kids 
have told you what I want.” 

“All right, go ahead. The women have the 
vote nowadays and I’m in the minority. They 
are keen for the pay. I suppose you will make 
that satisfactory,” said Uncle Weary, also sit¬ 
ting down on a stool. 

“Sure!” said the manager heartily. “We 

won’t quarrel about that. I’ll give you all 

you’re worth and I can tell when I see how 

you act how much I ought to pay you. You 

see, you are not professionals.” 

This seemed fair and the rehearsals began. 

no 


GRANNY AS A MOVIE STAR 111 

Uncle Weary had to lie in the hammock with 
his pipe in his mouth. Aunt Em was told to 
strike a match to light his pipe. Granny must 
bend over the stove in the act of cooking, while 
the boys were to play with Jip on the ground, 
while Tony brought in a pail of water. The 
rehearsal was soon over, for the acting was 
very easy. The camera was trained on them 
by the photographer, the picture was taken, 
and they were ready for the water act which 
was to go into another movie. 

While they were walking to the swimming 
hole Uncle Weary remarked: “Well, if movie 
making is as easy as this, I don’t know but I’ll 
go into the business myself.” 

“You’d soon go to sawin’ wood or hoein’ in 
the garden,” said Mr. Fox. 

“Why, isn’t it always easy like this?” asked 
Granny. 

“No, ma’am! You bet your life it ain’t,” 
said the manager. “ ’Tain’t once in a coon’s 
age that I can get folks like you to act for 
me. I started out with professionals, but 


112 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


they’re all gettin’ so high and mighty and ask 
such big pay I had to get rid of the most of 
them and depend on outsiders. You folks are 
a regular bonanza, ’’ he went on. ‘ ‘ I don’t know 
when I’ve struck such a piece of good luck as 
cornin’ across your outfit.” 

* 1 Well, it’s good luck for us too, to have the 
chance to make so much money for Tony,” said 
Granny cordially. 

“I call it pretty white to treat that young 
dago as you’re doin’,” said Mr. Fox, taking her 
arm to help her across a stony place in the road. 

“Oh, Tony isn’t a dago,” she returned. “He 
is a very superior Italian. He is very bright 
and interesting, and I think lie is talented, and 
would make his mark as a singer if he had a 
chance to study.” 

“Well, I guess you’re about right, ma’am, 
and I’d like to be the one to give him the chance. 
I’d soon train him to be a first-rate movie ac¬ 
tor,” said the manager. 

“I believe you could,” she said, “and I’d like 
to have you try, only Tony needs something 


GRANNY AS A MOVIE STAR 


113 


more than the chance to make money. He is 
getting good care with us, and it is worth a 
good deal to him to have the companionship 
of a man like Mr. Williams. Then he worships 
our little boys and thinks it the greatest privi¬ 
lege to live w T ith them. He thinks they saved 
his life last year in that terrible flood in Danton 
—I know they saved mine.” 

She told him then the story of how Archie 
and Eddie had rescued her from drowning the 
year before and what good fortune it turned 
out to be since by that means she had found a 
delightful home and dear friends. 

“Well, I swan, if good luck don’t seem to 
fall plumb down on some folks and run away 
from other folks—me, for instance,” said Mr. 
Fox rather sadly. 

They had now reached the swimming hole 
where they were to act in a very dramatic story. 
A regular thriller, so Mr. Fox told them. He 
had written the story himself, and if he could 
get it well acted he was sure he could make a 
fortune out of it. 


114 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


He had tried once, and the principal charac¬ 
ter in it, an old lady, had been “no good.” 
She couldn’t act worth a cent. He went on to 
say that the star he had with him could do the 
part all right if she would, but she hated the 
water and asked such a big price for doing it 
he couldn’t pay her. 

“You look like you could do it fine,” he went 
on, turning to Granny. “Just the build for 
it. My star is too big and fat, besides she 
couldn’t keep no make-up on in the water.” 

“Tell us the story,” said Granny, “and I’ll 
see if I can do it.” 

It was a very sensational tale which he called 
“Saved from the Poorhouse.” The first scene 
showed three people in a boat. A middle-aged 
man, his wife about the same age, and a little 
old woman, the mother of the man. The old 
woman wrings her hands and looks imploringly 
at her daughter-in-law, who shakes her head 
angrily. The mother throws her arms round 
the younger woman, who pushes her away with 


GRANNY AS A MOVIE STAR 115 

such force that she falls overboard and sinks 
beneath the water while the boat is rowed rap¬ 
idly away out of sight. The next scene shows 
two boys diving from a spring-board. After 
several plunges into the water, the old woman 
comes drifting along, clinging to a piece of 
board. The boys see her and hasten to get 
into a boat standing near, row out to the old 
woman and haul her into the boat half dead. 

“Do you s’pose you can do it?” said the 
manager anxiously. “You’re just right in 
looks for the old woman, but I’m afraid it’ll 
be too hard for you.” 

“How deep is the water!” she asked. “I 
can’t swim.” 

“It’s only about four feet where you’ll get 
chucked in,” he said. “You’d have to scrooch 
down for an instant under the water, just an 
instant at the end of the act.” 

“I think I can do that all right,” she said. 

The manager looked very much relieved. 
“Well, if you can manage that scene you can 


11G A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

do all the rest like a house afire, for the next 
scene is awful easy, that is, if the boys are 
strong enough to haul you into the boat. I 
guess they can all right. They look pretty 
husky.” 

“Oh, yes,” cried Eddie. “I could pull her 
in myself, and of course Archie and I can do 
it all right.” 

“I bet you can,” said the little man, beam¬ 
ing. “Let’s try it.” 

Granny was very strong and quick for one of 
her years, and turned out to be as much of a 
surprise to Mr. Fox as Tony had been. She 
played the part of a forsaken and drowning old 
woman with a great deal of intelligence and 
skill, coming up to the boys in the water clutch¬ 
ing her board with a very tragic expression on 
her face. The boys easily dragged her into the 
boat and the rehearsal was over. Mr. Fox 
actually danced with delight on the bank of 
the river. The two scenes had been acted to. 
liis satisfaction without any coaching on his 
part, an experience entirely new to him, he said, 



She played the part with a great deal of intelligence and skill. 














GRANNY AS A MOVIE STAR 117 

and lie believed he had stumbled on a bunch 
of first-class actors, he told Uncle Weary. 

Granny was taken back to Allserene in Mr. 
Fox’s car, to change her wet clothing and to 
dry her hair. In a few moments she was back 
again, and the picture was taken without 4 ‘ spil¬ 
in’ an inch of film,” so Mr. Fox declared. 

“And now,” he went on, “if I could get you 
folks for my last act I’d be made.” 

“What is the act!” asked Uncle Weary. 
“It’s a parlor scene, and very easy. You see, 
the old woman is taken home by the boys to 
their folks, who take the old woman in and do 
for her. She’ll be all fixed up nice, sittin’ in a 

rockin’ chair knittin’. The boys will be bondin’ 

... * 

over her, strokin’ her hair and pettin’ her, and 
if you and that good-lookin’ wife of yours will 
act the part of father and mother to the boys, 
the lady pourin’ tea and you handin’ it to the 
old lady, why, the picture is made. No trick 
at all, you see.” 

“Where would you have the scene!” asked 
Uncle Weary. 


118 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


‘‘In the parlor of the hotel where we’re stay¬ 
ing,’ ’ returned Mr. Fox eagerly. “And you’ll 
all do it, do you think?” 

“I think so,” said Uncle Weary. “They are 
anxious to make all the money they can. But 
see here, young man, aren’t you stealing some 
one’s thunder? ‘Over the Hill to the Poor- 
house’ is the same story as yours.” 

“No. it isn’t,” said the manager positively. 
“I know all about that movie. My story has 
much the same idea, but it’s better, and so dif¬ 
ferent those people can’t jump on me.” 

“How will you have your story end?” asked 
Uncle Weary. 

“Oh, that’s easy enough,” said Mr. Fox. 
“You gotta have a fight, you know, in every 
movie. The bad son and his wife will have 
their comeupance by fighting in the boat after 
the drownin’ scene of the old woman, when 
they’ll fall overboard and both drown together. 
That’ll make a water scene and a fight all in 
one, and be awfully exciting. Besides, it’ll be 
a lot easier to make than a street fight where 


GRANNY AS A MOVIE STAR 


119 


you’ve got to have a lot of people and perhaps 
have to pay a good deal out for it. I’m gom* 
to make that scene right now and have it over 
with. You can bet your life, Mr. Williams, my 
movie is goin’ to beat ‘Over the Hill’ all hol¬ 
low.” 

“Well, I guess you’ll be all right,” remarked 
Uncle Weary. “I suppose trying to send old 
mothers to the poorhouse isn’t a patented 
idea, and your story is lurid enough to suit the 
taste of the public.” 

“It’ll be the best show on the road, if you 
folks’ll help me out to-morrow in that parlor 
scene,” said the little man eagerly. 

“All right, I’ll see,” answered Uncle Weary. 
“My folks are keen to make money and the 
stunt seems easy enough.” 

“You bet it is. Nothin’ at all compared to 
the water scene. That old lady of yourn did 
fine. I’d like to engage her to go along with 
me, and that young dago too. He has the 
makin’ of a first-rate movie actor.” 

Uncle Weary looked thoughtful. Here 


120 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


seemed to be an opening for the two poor, 
homeless people that chance had thrown in his 
way. He and his wife had adopted them into 
their family and were very fond of them. It 
would be hard to give them up, but he could 
not be selfish enough to stand in the way of 
their best interests. He was sure his wife 
would agree with him that both of them should 
be allowed to choose for themselves. 

“I will let you know to-night,’’ he said to 
the manager, who shook Uncle Weary’s hand 
cordially at parting and hurried away to col¬ 
lect his actors for his last act. 

The consultation at Camp Allserene was soon 
over. The vote in favor of doing the last act 
in the hotel parlor was unanimous in favor of 
it, but when Uncle Weary told them of the 
manager’s proposition to engage Granny and 
Tony to go with his company, he was surprised 
at the way his news was received. Granny 
looked hurt, and Tony’s eyes filled with tears. 

“I’ll go if you are tired of me,” said the 
old lady in a trembling voice. 


GRANNY AS A MOVIE STAR 121 

“If the signor wishes it I will leave his 
service,” said Tony mournfully. 

“Will, how can you be so absurd?” exclaimed 
Aunt Em, running to her old friend and put¬ 
ting her arms round her neck. “We can’t spare 
Mother and you wouldn’t leave us for any old 
movie business, would you?” she asked, look¬ 
ing down lovingly into the wrinkled old face. 

Granny looked up gratefully, and A.unt Em 
said, “Tony, you want to stay with us, don’t 
you?” . 

“Si, si, Signora, I do, I do!” answered the 
Italian fervently. 

Uncle Weary sat down on a camp stool, look¬ 
ing both pleased and vexed. 

“Well, women are the most unaccountable 
creatures on earth,” he said. “You know 
you’re all talking nonsense. You ought to 
know I was simply proposing a scheme which 
I thought maybe would be for the best inter¬ 
ests of both of them. They want money and 
here’s a chance to earn a lot more than we can 
give them. And you, Em, are selfish enough—” 


122 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Money won’t buy one a home, such as I 
have,” broke in Granny, and Tony said, smil¬ 
ing, “I have already riches, Signor.” 

Uncle Weary rose laughing, and remarked 
that he guessed he was beaten again, and Aunt 
Em said cheerfully: “Well now, that’s settled. 
We won’t talk about it any more. Let’s have 
supper.” 


CHAPTER XI 


SETTLING 


T HE “Parlor scene” of Mr. B'ox’s melo¬ 
drama was soon acted. 

“It's just like a charade,” remarked Archie. 
“We often have them at home and we act just 
like that.” 

“But you see IVe got your looks, too, and 
that’s just as important as the acting,” said 
the manager. “I’d like to keep the whole 
bunch of ye for another movie I got in hand. 
S’pose yer uncle will let me keep yer grand¬ 
mother and Tony to help me out?” 

The boys had not heard the discussion of 
the elders about the project of Mr. Fox 
and were very much surprised at his ques¬ 
tion. 

“Why, no,” answered Eddie. “We can’t 
get along without ’em ourselves.” 

123 


124 * 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


The man, seeing that the boys knew nothing 
of his proposition, changed the subject quickly. 

They took off their borrowed finery, putting 
on their own clothes, and Tony drove them all 
but Uncle Weary to their camp. It had been 
arranged that the latter should stay to settle 
with Mr. Fox for their services, when Tony 
would go back with the car for him. 

There had been no bargain beforehand for 
the amount of money they were to receive, but 
they had every reason to expect they would be 
well paid. 

“Be sure you ask enough, Will,” whispered 
his wife as she took her seat in the automobile. 
“You know you’re too easy about bargains .’ 9 

“How much shall I ask?” he inquired. 

“Don’t take less than twenty-five dollars 
anyway,” she advised. 

“Yes, it’s worth all of that,” he assented as 
the car rolled away. 

The two men went into the parlor of the 
hotel for their important conference. Mr. Fox 
placed a fat roll of bank bills on the table and 


SETTLING 125 

signed to Uncle Weary to be seated in the chair 
near his own. 

‘‘Well, now, Mr. Williams,” he began briskly, 
“I want to pay your crowd for their stunts. 
Shall it be singly or in a lump sum?” 

‘‘Lump,” said Uncle Weary briefly. 

“All right, and what is the size of the fig¬ 
ure ?” The little man pushed back his hat from 
his forehead and wiped his perspiring face with 
his handkerchief. He was evidently very nerv¬ 
ous and he gave his companion an anxious, 
troubled look. 

“I’ve had all sorts of bad luck, Mr. Wil¬ 
liams/ ’ he said, without waiting for a reply to 
his question, “and I’m pretty hard up. My 
professionals have been regular vultures. 
They’ve almost eaten me up. I wish I could 
pay you what the job’s worth, but I’m afraid 
I shan’t be able to. Would a hundred and fifty 
dollars satisfy you for the three acts?” 

Uncle Weary rose from his chair and leaned 
with both hands on its back as he looked with 
a scowl at the perspiring little man. 


126 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“I can't take that, Mr. Fox," he said, curtly. 

“I was afraid you'd say that. I know it's 
worth a whole lot more." He began to unroll 
his bills as he spoke. “Will two hundred do?" 
he asked anxiously. 

“No," thundered Uncle Weary angrily, bend¬ 
ing threateningly over the little man. “I shall 
not be satisfied with any such sum as that." 

“Well, then, two hundred and twenty-five? I 
think really that is a fair price, Mr. Williams." 

“How much have you in that pile?" de¬ 
manded the younger man, still frowning and 
pointing to the bank notes. 

Mr. Fox spread the bills on the table and 
counted them aloud. “Only five hundred," he 
said. “It’s all I've got. I’ll have to pay my 
bills here. If you ask much more I shall be 
dead broke. You ain’t professionals, you know. 
I had no idea I’d have to—" 

“See here, Mr. Fox," interrupted Uncle 
Weary, “I took you for a man of sense, but 
I see I was mistaken. You know as well as 
I do that our services are not worth two hun- 


SETTLING 


127 


dred and twenty-five dollars. Do yon take ns 
for highway robbers? Do we look like a gang 
of thieves ?” 

Mr. Fox opened his mouth and gazed in silent 
bewilderment, as though he had not understood 
the angry words. 

“Give me fifty dollars and don’t you dare 
offer me a penny more,” demanded Uncle 
Weary, holding out his hand for the money. 
There was a twinkle in his eye and the dazed 
little man began to think he was dealing with 
a crazy man or a joker. 

“Well, well,” he said as he began to count 
the bills. “You’re the first white man I’ve 
come across since I’ve been in the business. I 
don’t know what to make of you.” 

Uncle Weary laughed and sat down. “How 
long have you been in this business, Mr. Fox?” 
he asked, as he tucked the roll of bills in his 
vest pocket. 

“Just this summer,” said the little manager, 
“and I’m beginning to think I’m a fool for 
going into it.” 


128 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Why, aren’t you making lots of money?” 
asked the other in a tone of interest. 

“Not a red so far. It’s a losin’ game for 
me. My money runs away like pourin’ water 
in a rat hole.” He twitched his chair a little 
nearer to his listener and went on in a confi¬ 
dential tone. “You see, it’s this way. I’ve 
been work-in’ with a big movie concern out in 
Californy. It looked like they was makin’ 
heaps of money, and I s’pose they was. I’d 
been paid good wages and had saved quite a 
little pile. My grandfather died and left me 
five thousand dollars and I said to myself, 
‘Why shouldn’t I take all that money and start 
a business on my own hook and get rich quick?’ 
My wife, she didn’t want me to do it. She said 
it was too risky. She thought I couldn’t buck 
against the big companies. Well, if I’d a taken 
her advice I’d a been a good deal better off. 
Young man, you’d better listen to your wife’s 
judgment. It’s sure to be a hull lot bettern 
yourn. ’ ’ 


SETTLING 


129 


Uncle Weary nodded in approval of this sen¬ 
timent and Mr. Fox went on: 

“I was pig-headed and went on with my 
scheme in spite of what she said. I brought 
her and the kids on to her folks in this state. 
I bought an outfit, an automobile, a camera and 
wardrobes, and hired some professional movie 
actors. I wrote my own scenarios so I didn’t 
have to pay for them, but I’m bled at every 
pore, by everybody, till I came upon you. 
Folks seem to think the movie business is a 
gold mine. I guess they’ll find out if they 
tried it.” 

It seemed to be a great comfort to the little 
man to pour his troubles into the ear of this 
kind, friendly stranger, who was the first one 
he had found who had been “square” with 
him. 

“Well, Mr. Fox,” said Uncle Weary, rising, 
“I see you’ve had a pretty tough time with 
your experiment, but I wouldn’t be discour¬ 
aged. When I was a schoolboy I had this sen- 


130 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


tence in my copybook, ‘Experience is a good 
teacher.’ I guess that’s true. And there’s an¬ 
other, just as good, ‘It’s never too late to 
mend.’ You’d better quit this losing business. 
Take your wife and children in your car to 
California and go back to your big wages. 
They’d take you again, wouldn’t they?” 

“Sure they would,” agreed the little man¬ 
ager. ‘ ‘ They hated awfully to have me go and 
told me they’d give me my old place any time 
I wanted it.” 

“You’ll have to eat some ‘humble pie’ prob¬ 
ably when you tell your wife,” said Uncle 
Weary, laughing. 

“No, I won’t. She’s white. She won’t say 
nothin’. And, by gum, I’ll do it!” said the 
little man, striking the table with his fist for 
emphasis. 

“Now you’re showing good sense,” said 
Uncle Weary heartily. “And don’t forget 
you’re not the only square peg in a round hole. 
’Most every one has to feel round and get some 


SETTLING 


131 


hard knocks before he finds out what he’s good 
for.” 

“I’m afraid I ain’t good for much of any¬ 
thing,” said the little man rather sadly. “Do 
you think I am, Mr. Williams?” 

“Why, yes,” said Uncle Weary, cheerfully. 
“I shouldn’t wonder if you could write stories 
for the movies. You could do that in your 
spare time along with your regular job, couldn’t 
youI’ ’ 

“Did you like my story, ‘Saved from the 
Poorhouse’?” cried Mr. Fox, with a beaming 
face. “Do you think it will take?” 

“ ’Course it will,” Uncle Weary said, laugh¬ 
ing and patting the shoulder of the manager 
encouragingly. “It’s just the kind of stuff the 
public wants—they’ll eat it up and call for 
more.” 

Mr. Fox was so overcome he could not speak 
while Uncle Weary shook his hand and hurried 
away. 

Before leaving the hotel he went to the office 


132 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

and wrote a letter to Mr. Fox, inclosing twenty- 
five dollars. “My wife thinks twenty-five dol¬ 
lars enough pay for us. I’m going to take your 
advice and do as she says,” he wrote, “so I 
refund this money which does not belong to us. 
Keep a ‘stiff upper lip,’ stick to the job you 
can do well, and good luck and good-by. W. 
Williams.” He sealed the letter, directed it, 
and told the hotel clerk to deliver it the next 
morning. 

As soon as he could find an opportunity to 
speak to his wife and mother, he told them of 
his talk with Mr. Fox and handed Granny the 
money. 

“You did just right, Will, as you always do,” 
was Aunt Em’s comment when he had finished, 
and Granny said, “You’ll get to heaven, my 
son.” 

Uncle Weary said nothing, but he looked 
pleased and suggested that they start at once 
on the road. 

“If we stay here any longer we’ll have to 
pull Eddie out by the roots,” he said. “And, 


SETTLING 


133 


then, I don’t want to have an argument with 
that little softy about the money. He’ll be 
sure to come around to try to make me take it 
back. ’ ’ 

Granny and Em agreed to this plan and be¬ 
gan to pack the suitcases. Uncle Weary found 
the boys to tell them of the decision. As usual 
Eddie was sorry to leave so soon. He was 
having such a good time at the swimming hole, 
he said, and he was sure they would never have 
another chance to be in the movies. 

“Well, you’ll have just as good fun at the 
next place, Sonny,” said Uncle Weary kindly. 
“You know you always do.” 

“I s’pose so,” said the little boy, smiling 
rather ruefully, and trying to take the matter 
cheerfully. 

“Uncle Weary, can’t we say good-by to the 
Hansens?” asked Archie. 

“Yes, run and ask them all to come over. 
Tell them we will be off in half an hour,” he 
said. 

Fortunately the Hansen children happened to 


134 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

be at home when Archie told them the news. 
They soon arrived at Camp Allserene with 
their mother and stood in a silent, sorrowful 
group watching the fascinating operation of 
folding the big tent into a small compass and 
strapping it down tightly into the trailer. 

The tourists had been in camp only two days, 
but children form sudden and ardent friend¬ 
ships when they have good times together, and 
the Hansens looked sad when the time came to 
say good-by. Little Norda wept when Eddie 
kissed her, though her small round face bright¬ 
ened into smiles when she found the silver ten- 
cent piece he pressed into her fat hand. 

Uncle Weary gave each of the boys a half 
dollar with which to buy firecrackers for the 
Fourth. They were very much pleased and 
thanked him politely and, with their gentle 
mother, waved a cheerful good-by to the trav¬ 
elers. 


CHAPTER XII 


ON WHEELS AGAIN 

T HEY had started so near the lunch hour 
that they were soon hungry and decided 
to stop to eat at the first favorable spot where 
they could find water and shade. They came 
across them both together in about half an 
hour. A great leafy maple tree stretched its 
green arms over a watering trough by the road¬ 
side, making a cool shade by the running water. 

“Oh, this is the place for us!” shouted Ed¬ 
die, as soon as they reached the place. 

Every one agreed that nothing could be bet¬ 
ter, and the big car rolled on to the soft grass 
which covered the ground under the thick 
foliage of the tree. 

The boys and the little dog were the first ones 
to taste the cold, clear spring water running 
into the trough, and Uncle Weary and Tony 

135 


136 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

walked to a little farmhouse several yards back 
from the road to buy, if possible, milk, butter, 
and eggs. Aunt Em decided to serve the 
luncheon in the car, since they were so near 
the road she feared the dust from passing 
vehicles would fall on the food if spread on 
the grass. She had packed in a suitcase some 
cold roast chicken, fresh bread and butter, a 
carton of cookies, and a pot of jam, so that 
when the men returned with two thermos bottles 
of cold, rich milk and a quart of red raspberries 
in a paper bag, they found the meal almost 
ready. It was served, as usual, on paper plates 
and in aluminum cups, and as Aunt Em was 
always a good provider there was plenty for all 
of them, including the little dog, who especially 
enjoyed crunching chicken bones. 

The roads were fairly smooth and very level, 
so that with Tony’s excellent driving they made 
seventy-five miles in the afternoon. The sun 
was scorching and the dry weather made a good 
deal of dust, but the travelers did not feel these 
discomforts very much, for the motion of the 


ON WHEELS AGAIN 


137 


automobile made a breeze and they left the dust 
behind them. Aunt Em was now familiar with 
the sight of vast monotonous fields of corn and 
grain, with green-shuttered farmhouses and 
big barns, and with small and large towns and 
villages, the latter looking much alike to her 
as they drove through them. She was never 
bored, for there was always something inter¬ 
esting to talk about, and as their pace was 
never very fast, she and Granny managed to 
knit or crochet very comfortably, and they 
often stopped for the boys to pick ripe berries 
which they sometimes found in thickets by the 
roadside. 

Archie and Eddie never tired of the riding. 
They were allowed to run and walk with Jip 
whenever their legs felt cramped and they in¬ 
dulged in sodas or ice-cream in every village 
or town they went through. A favorite amuse¬ 
ment for them was to see who could tell first 
the name and “make” of every car they met 
or passed. It was astonishing to the elders to 
see how accurate and quick they were in this 


138 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


pastime. As soon as a car came in sight one 
or the other of the boys would shout, “Buick” 
or “Studebaker” or “Hudson” or “Cadillac,” 
seldom making a mistake. Granny said there 
was something almost uncanny in this accom¬ 
plishment, and Uncle Weary remarked one day 
that if they knew their Latin verbs as well as 
they seemed to know all the “makes” of cars 
there were in the world there might be some 
chance of their getting into college. And then 
Aunt Em asked her husband if he remembered 
all his Latin verbs or could tell the “makes” 
at sight of any of the cars they met. Then 
everybody laughed, and the boys thought they 
had “one more” on Uncle Weary. 

They camped that night in a village on a 
vacant lot. They were not very comfortable, 
for mosquitoes and children swarmed about 
them, full of stings or curiosity, so that it was 
difficult to rest until bedtime and the young¬ 
sters went home. Then they were able to sleep 
very well, for Aunt Em had provided a large 
square of mosquito netting which she fastened 


ON WHEELS AGAIN 


139 


over the door of the tent. The two large win¬ 
dows in the roof were well screened with a net¬ 
ting which let in the air and kept out flies and 
mosquitoes. 

They were up at sunrise the next morning 
ready for an early start in the cool of the day. 
At five o’clock, when most of the villagers were 
still sleeping, they were on their way in a south¬ 
westerly direction. Uncle Weary had decided 
to reach Kansas by crossing the Mississippi 
River at Kansas City. In a few hours they 
came to quite a different region from the rich 
country they had been going through. There 
were hills and rocky lands and sandy stretches 
and poor “run down” little farms on both sides 
of the road. 

“Dear me, Will, I didn’t know there was such 
a miserable-looking country in the West,” re¬ 
marked Aunt Em. “Do let us hurry out of it. 
It gives me the blues.” 

“Looks to me very much like New England,” 
returned her husband. “Only these are little 
hills instead of mountains.” 

i 


140 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

4 ‘How can you say that!” she exclaimed in¬ 
dignantly. “I never saw anything like this 
country anywhere in Vermont. Our valley, you 
know, was like a beautiful garden.’’ 

“Guess you never went over the mountain, 
Em. The fields there are as hard and rocky 
as these.’’ 


CHAPTER XIII 


SILAS CROCKETT 

T HIS discussion was ended by an exclama¬ 
tion from Eddie, who was pointing to an 
old worn-out Ford in the road ahead of them. 

‘ 4 What is the matter with that Ford?” he 
cried. 

“The person driving it must be drunk or 
crazy, or both,” said Uncle Weary. 

“Oh, stop, Tony, quick!” cried Aunt Em. 
“You’ll run into it.” 

Tony stopped and they all watched anxiously 
the little car which wabbled about the road, 
first on one side and then on the other, several 
times almost capsizing in making a sharp turn. 
But it continued for some time to right itself 
as it zigzagged back and forth until finally it 
made a plunge and landed in a ditch by the 
roadside. 


141 


142 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

Uncle Weary and the boys ran to the assist¬ 
ance of whoever was in the car, which was not 
overturned, but stood right-side-up, seemingly 
wedged in the shallow ditch. A young man 
stuck his head out of the car as his rescuers 
came up to him, and said calmly and cheer¬ 
fully, as though nothing unusual had hap¬ 
pened: “Well, my Lizzie has a head on her, 
hasn’t she? If she must run into the ditch she 
knows enough to land on her feet.” 

Aunt Em ran after the others, and now stood 
looking over her husband’s shoulder. * 1 Are you 
hurt?” she asked the stranger anxiously. 

“Not a mite, ma’am; right as a kite,” he 
answered, smiling and giving her a military 
salute with his left hand. 

“Well, it’s a miracle that you are,” said 
Uncle Weary, rather sternly. “What’s the 
matter with you? Don’t you know how to drive 
a car?” 

“What business of yours is it how I run my 
car?” retorted the young man angrily. 

“I don’t want to be killed by your crazy 


SILAS CROCKETT 


143 


driving,” returned Uncle Weary indignantly. 

“Good job if you were killed, you long- 
legged straddle-bug,” roared the stranger. “If 
my Lizzie hasn’t got spunk enough to do it, I 
will. Get out of my way, I hate the sight of 
you,” he continued, throwing a crutch at the 
head of Uncle Weary. 

It fell harmlessly to the ground, for the 
aim had been uncertain, and then they knew 
they had to deal with an insane person. They 
stepped back some distance behind some bushes 
so that he could not see them and held a hurried 
consultation. 

“Let me manage him, Will,” said Aunt Em. 
“I know all about that kind of insanity. Uncle 
Dick was like that and I was the only one who 
could do anything with him.” 

“But you mustn’t be left alone with him, 
Em. He might hurt you,” said her husband 
anxiously. 

“Not a bit of danger,” she returned. 
“Didn’t you see that he has only one leg and 
one arm? He’s thrown his crutch beyond his 


144 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


reach. You’d better take our auto and go for 
help. I’ll stay and pacify him till you get 
back.” 

Archie and Eddie had been examining the 
back of the car to see if anything was broken, 
•and had not heard the quarrel between Uncle 
Weary and the crazy man, and now they came 
forward and began to chat with him in a 
friendly way while Uncle Weary and Aunt Em 
were whispering behind the bushes. 

‘ ‘ Your car seems to be all right, not a thing 
broken,” said Eddie. “Isn’t it wonderful? I 
thought you’d be all smashed up.” 

“That’s because you don’t know my Lizzie. 
I know she’ll come out of this hole safe and 
sound. She hain’t done me a mean trick yet,” 
returned the young fellow cheerfully. 

“The windshield is cracked,” remarked 
Archie, who was examining the front of the car. 

“That’s nothing, no harm done, keep out the 
wind and rain just the same,” he returned. 
“They call me cracked,” he went on, laughing. 
“But I’m not, I’m as sound as a nut.” 


SILAS CROCKETT 


145 


“Why don’t yon get out!” asked Eddie. 
“See, the door opens all right.” 

“Don’t have to. I’m waiting for some one 
to pick up my crutch for me,” he answered. 
“It’s over there somewhere in the grass. If 
you’ll find it and that red-headed monkey will 
crank up Lizzie, we’ll soon be out of this.” 

“Why, you can’t move this car out of the 
ditch without help, can you!” began the boy. 

The young man interrupted him, shouting 
angrily: “First you tell a lie and then ask a 
question. You must be a son of that ourang 
outang who thought he knew it all. I’ll teach 
you to show your grandmother how to suck 
eggs.” 

He scrambled out of the car, and fell on the 
ground with a large army revolver in his hand 
which he leveled at Archie. The poor fellow 
had but one leg, one arm, and one eye. It was 
impossible for him to do any harm with his 
revolver, for he could not take aim correctly 
with his left arm and his left eye gone. 

Archie did not know this, however, and 


146 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

darted behind a bush on the other edge of the 
ditch and then scampered down the road out 
of sight. Uncle Weary and Aunt Em had heard 
the angry shouts of the insane man and now 
came running toward him. 

“ Hands up or I shoot !” he yelled, pointing 
his revolver at Uncle Weary. “I won’t harm 
the lady, but if you come another inch you’ll 
be in Kingdom-come before you know it.” 

Uncle Weary held up his hands at once and 
stood still in the road, while his wife darted 
forward, after saying over her shoulder in a 
whisper, “Go back, Will; I’m not afraid.” 

She came up to the cripple lying quite help¬ 
less in a heap with his soiled army clothes 
twisted around him, and said to him with a 
smiling face and a quiet voice: “You have a 
nice revolver there. It looks like one my 
brother had when he came home from the war. 
May I look at it!” 

“Sure,” he returned, handing it to her. 
“Something seems to be the matter with the 


SILAS CROCKETT 


147 


durn thing. It wouldn’t go off when I pulled 
the trigger on that little scamp.” 

‘‘Perhaps there is some dirt in it, or it may 
be rusty,” she returned, pretending to examine 
the firearm. “Yes,” she went on, “I see it 
needs a little oil. I have some in my car. I’ll 
send Eddie for the bottle and we’ll soon fix it.” 
She laid the revolver on the ground beyond his 
reach. Eddie had disappeared with the crutch. 
Uncle Weary had run to the automobile and 
was explaining the situation to Granny and 
Tony. So Aunt Em knew they were all safe 
now and she could divert the attention of the 
poor fellow until something could be done. 

She began to talk to him soothingly about his 
Ford, commenting on its good qualities but 
making no reference to the plight he was in. 
He responded, very happy and bright to have 
his darling Lizzie praised by this pretty, gentle 
young woman. 

In the meantime Archie, running like the 
wind, had rounded a turn in the road and come 


148 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


in sight of a little log house almost covered 
with vines and standing in the middle of a large 
garden. It was inclosed by a white-washed 
picket fence and bright-colored flowers bloomed 
gaily in large beds and in borders on both sides 
of a neat graveled path which led to the open 
front door. 

Archie ran swiftly along the path and was 
met at the door by a plump old lady who looked 
rather startled by his sudden appearance. 

“Why, what is the matter, my dear?” she 
said quickly, in a sweet voice. 

The little boy was almost breathless and 
could not speak at first, but he had time to 
think she was the prettiest old lady he had 
ever seen, even prettier than his grandmother, 
who was called a beauty. She was leaning on 
a cane and walked with a slight limping gait, 
but her movements were not slow and she 
pulled the panting boy into the house with her 
firm though gentle hand and made him sit on a 
chair while she brought him some cold water to 
drink. 


SILAS CROCKETT 


149 


44 Now tell me as quickly as you can,’’ she 
said. 44 Is anybody hurt!” 

44 No,” said Archie. 44 But a lame man has 
run his car into a ditch down the road and he 
tried to shoot me.” 

44 Oh, dear me! That must be Silas,” she 
cried. 44 We’ve been afraid all along something 
like this would happen to him. You say he 
wasn’t hurt. Was his auto overturned!” 

44 No,” said Archie, 44 it was standing all right 
in the ditch and the man was sitting by the 
road. He seemed to be very angry with me 
because I said he would have to get some one 
to help get the car out of the ditch, and then 
he pointed a big revolver at me and I ran.” 

44 Yes, I see,” she said, looking much relieved. 
4 4 No wonder you were scared. But poor Silas 
couldn’t hurt you. That revolver is out of or¬ 
der; it can’t go off, though he thinks it can, 
and you can run much faster than he can, for 
he has but one leg.” 

44 But what made him get so angry with me!” 
asked Archie. 


150 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Why, you see, dear, the poor boy has been 
through dreadful experiences and they have 
affected his mind. He was the dearest, sweet¬ 
est fellow in the world before that. Now he is 
all right until some one finds fault with him 
or seems to oppose him, when he goes all to 
pieces and gets wild with anger. But you 
couldn’t know that, of course. I’m so sorry he 
has frightened you. How did you happen to 
be with him?” 

Archie told her and she exclaimed: “Ah, I 
see. My poor Silas might have killed you all 
with his car and it’s a miracle that he escaped 
alive.” 

“Is he your son?” asked Archie. 

“No, dear; he lives with me and is like a 
son. I love him very much.” 

“I think I’d better go back and tell Uncle 
Weary and Aunt Em what you say,” said the 
little boy, rising. 

“Yes, and I’ll go with you,” assented the old 
lady. “Is he far away?” 

“Oh, no; just down the road a little way, but 


SILAS CROCKETT 


151 


you can’t walk, can you? Aren’t you lame?” 

“I sprained my ankle about a week ago, but 
you see I can hobble about a little,” she said. 
44 The doctor told me to keep still, but I think 
I’ll have to go to Silas to see about getting him 
home. I’m afraid no one else can do it.” 

“Haven’t you a horse and carriage?” asked 
Archie. 

“Yes, but I’m afraid to harness our old pony 
just now, she’d be apt to step on my lame foot. 
I think I can manage to walk.” 

She put on a large straw hat and limped to¬ 
ward the door. 

4 4 Let me harness, ’ ’ said Archie. 4 4 Where can 
I find the horse?” 

The old lady sank into a chair with a groan, 
evidently in great pain. 

44 Can you really do it, dear?” she said. 
4 4 That would be splendid and the best way to 
get Silas home.” 

“I harness my pony at home,” replied 
Archie, 44 and I’m sure I can harness yours.” 

She told him where to find the little stable 


152 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

with the horse and carriage, and he drove round 
to the gate in a very short time, for he had no 
trouble at all in managing the gentle old pony. 
The carriage was also very old, but it was clean 
and in good condition, and was built so low that 
the old lady was able to step into it with 
Archie’s help. She took the lines in her hands 
as she said, “You’d better let me drive alone 
while you walk. It wouldn’t do to let Silas see 
you. If he gets a grudge against people he 
never gets over it and so you’d better keep out 
of sight.” 

She clucked to the old horse, who walked 
sedately round the curve and down the road, 
soon coming to the cripple, who was now lying 
on his side in the grass. Aunt Em was seated 
by his side, talking in a very friendly way. He 
smiled up at her and tried to talk, but he was 
very pale and his face twitched with the pain he 
was evidently suffering. She knew it was best 
not to notice his condition, and kept on chat¬ 
ting cheerfully, with her eyes on the road, hop¬ 
ing to see some one come in sight who might 


SILAS CROCKETT 


153 


Kelp her out of her dilemma, and presently the 
rosy old lady came limping up to them, leaving 
her old horse standing in the road. 

“Is he hurt?” she said anxiously, looking 
down at the cripple, whose eyes were now 
closed. 

“Bet your life I’m not, mother, dear,” he 
said faintly. “I’m just lying here till Lizzie 
gets rested, then she’ll take me home.” 

“Yes, I see, Silas,” she said, quietly. 
“That’s a good idea of yours. Your ideas are 
always good. Now what do you think of my 
idea for you to take a little nap while Lizzie 
is resting? Think you could?” 

“I might,” he said in a whisper, “if that 
long-legged hyena in that car over there would 
get out of my sight. He wants to steal Lizzie. 
He knows she’s a lot better than his old truck.” 

“Yes, of course,” said the old lady briskly. 
“This young lady will go with me and we’ll 
tell that bad fellow to get away from here as 
quickly as possible. You keep an eye on Lizzie 
so no one will steal her while we are gone.” 


154 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“I want her to stay with me,” he whispered, 
peevishly. 

“All right, I’ll stay,” said Aunt Em, sooth¬ 
ingly, sitting down again on the grass. 

The old lady hastened to the car, and after 
introducing herself as Mrs. Cavendish, told 
Uncle Weary and Granny in a few words that 
she was afraid the cripple had been injured by 
his fall from the car. His spine was very weak 
and a fall of any kind, the doctor said, might 
be followed by serious consequences. She 
would be very glad, she said, if Uncle Weary 
would hasten to the village a mile beyond them 
and bring out the doctor as quickly as possible. 
Uncle Weary saw there was no time to lose and 
gave Tony the order to start at once, leaving 
Granny and Eddie with the old lady. Archie 
had managed to reach the auto without being 
seen by the cripple, and went with Uncle Weary 
to the village. 

While the two old ladies were walking back 
to where the invalid lay, Granny asked, “Is 
this young man your son!” 


SILAS CROCKETT 


155 


“No,” the other explained, “he has had no 
home since his mother died five years ago. She 
was my intimate friend and I was glad to have 
Silas come to live with me. He is like a son. 
I love him very much.” 

“I have an adopted son, too,” said Granny. 
“I know all about it. But your boy seems to 
have been a soldier. He wears a uniform, I 
see.” 

“Yes,” replied the other, “he enlisted when 
we first went into the war, and he came back 
a few months ago with a leg, an arm, and one 
eye gone, and his mind unsettled by shell¬ 
shock.” 

“Isn’t he sometimes dangerous?” suggested 
Granny. 

“Oh, no,” the other hastened to say. “Silas 
couldn’t hurt a fly if he tried. People who 
know him are not a bit afraid of him. The 
only thing that makes him angry is when peo¬ 
ple seem to contradict him or find fault with 
him . 9 7 

By this time they had reached the cripple, 


156 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


and bis foster mother, kneeling by his side, said 
quietly: “Silas, dear, IVe brought you another 
friend. She wants to hear you sing. We’d all 
love to hear ‘Over There.’ ” 

“Yes, indeed,” said Granny cordially, also 
sitting by his side. “That is my favorite song; 
I never get tired of hearing it.” 

He smiled like a happy child and commenced 
to sing the familiar song in a very sweet tenor 
voice. Just then Uncle Weary came back with 
a gray-haired doctor and two young men, and 
they all hastened to the group, and the doctor 
said cheerfully, “Well, Silas, Lizzie’s gone back 
on you to-day, hasn’t she?” 

“No, Doc, of course she hasn’t,” said the 
young man peevishly. “She never balks— 
she’s just tired and she’s got sense enough to 
rest.” 

“Oh, yes, I see,” said the doctor cheerfully. 
“Well, we’ll let her stand as long as she likes 
and while she’s resting these boys want to play 
with you. They’ve brought along a stretcher 


SILAS CROCKETT 


157 


because they thought you’d let them play carry¬ 
ing a wounded soldier to the hospital. They 
think that’s the best fun they have.” 

“All right,” said Silas. “That suits me. 
But you ask the boys to wait until I sing to 
these ladies. I’d just begun when you inter¬ 
rupted. ’ ’ 

“I’ll tell you a good idea, Silas,” said Mrs. 
Cavendish, leaning over the invalid and strok¬ 
ing his head tenderly. “You know you sing so 
much better when I play an accompaniment. 
Let the boys take you on the stretcher to the 
house, these ladies will go with us, and then 
you will sing beautifully as you always do when 
I play for you on the piano.” 

“All right, mother dear, just as you 
say,” he said rather wearily, closing his 
eyes. 

“That’s right, old fellow,” said the doctor, 
kneeling by his side with a small drinking glass 
in his hand. “You always come up to the 
scratch, we can depend on you every time. 


158 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

Now drink this stuff, it will clear your throat 
and make you sing like a nightingale. Caruso 
won’t be in it with you!” 

Silas drank the medicine obediently. The doc¬ 
tor motioned to four young men seated in the 
automobile who came forward carrying an 
army stretcher, and Silas was lifted carefully 
on to it. 

The soothing potion the doctor had given him 
soon had its effect. The look of pain left his 
face, he closed his eyes, and the young men 
carried him gently up the hill to the little vine- 
covered cottage, the good doctor walking close 
by his side. 

The others followed in the automobile and 
found that the doctor had placed Silas on his 
white cot in his own little bedroom which 
opened into the large low-ceilinged living-room. 
He was sleeping quietly, so they all tiptoed out 
to a little bower in the back part of the garden 
for consultation. 

“I haven’t words enough to thank you for 


SILAS CROCKETT 


159 


what you have done for us, Mr. Williams,” said 
their hostess feelingly. 

“It’s the least we could do for you after 
being the cause of all this trouble,” returned 
Uncle Weary. 

“Why, I don’t see how you could possibly 
have been responsible for poor Silas’s mis¬ 
haps,” she said in a surprised tone. 

“We might have guessed from his uniform 
that he had been through the war and needed 
help and encouragement instead of a scolding,” 
said Uncle Weary, sitting down on the bench 
by the side of the old lady. 

“Why, your wife seemed to be on the best 
of terms w T ith my boy when I reached there. 
He seemed to have taken a great fancy to her,” 
she replied. 

“My wife carries all the good sense of our 
family. She never makes mistakes, and knows 
just what to say and do on all occasions,” he 
said. 

“It was not good sense so much as experience 


160 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


that I used to-day,” said Em. “I have a cousin 
who was slightly deranged by shell-shock and 
the only way we could manage him was by hu¬ 
moring him.” 

“Is he well now? Did he get over the shell¬ 
shock?” asked the old lady eagerly. 

“Oh, yes,” she returned, “in about a year 
he gradually became quite normal and is now 
in his old place in a bank.” 

“Oh, if I could only believe that would hap¬ 
pen to my poor boy,” exclaimed the old lady 
fervently. “Do you think there is any hope, 
Doctor?” 

“Certainly, certainly. There is every reason 
to think Silas will come out all right if you 
give him time, ’ ’ said the old man. ‘ ‘ He is young 
and tough. If he hadn’t the nine lives of a cat 
he’d have been dead long ago, shot to pieces 
as he was.” 

“But his back, Doctor. I’m afraid that is 
seriously injured. I have never seen him sutler 
so much as he does now.” 


SILAS CROCKETT 


161 

“We will see,” said the doctor. “I will be 
able to tell in the morning when I examine him. 
He would better sleep now until his brain is 
quieted.” 

“What can we do, Doctor, to help?” asked 
Uncle Weary, rising. 

“Oh, yes, indeed, Doctor,” added Em, com¬ 
ing to her husband’s side. “Do let us do some¬ 
thing for Silas. We would consider it an honor 
if you would.’ ’ 

“You are very kind,” the old man returned, 
“and you have played the good Samaritan al¬ 
ready. We couldn’t ask anything more.” 

“Yes, wasn’t it providential for them to come 
just as they did, and do for Silas what they 
did? I shall never forget their kindness,” said 
their hostess, with tears in her eyes. 

“Will, don’t you think we’d better camp near 
here for the night?” asked Granny, joining the 
group. “I’d like to know how the young man 
is in the morning before we go on.” 

“I’d thought of that myself,” said Uncle 


162 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

Weary. “I suppose there would be no objec¬ 
tion to our stopping in this neighborhood, Doc¬ 
tor?” 

“Well, I should say not,” the old man re¬ 
turned heartily. “It would be a God-send to 
me if you would, and take me in and out in 
your car to-night. My auto is out of repair 
and I suppose Silas’ ‘Lizzie’ can’t be used 
again until it’s fixed.” 

And so it was quickly arranged. They drove 
to a small grove of trees a short distance away 
where the villagers were in the habit of pic¬ 
nicking. There they found some tables and 
benches which were fixed permanently in the 
ground, and a nice grassy spot where All¬ 
serene was established, with water from the 
well of a home a few yards away. 

As usual Eddie was enchanted with the place, 
especially when he found two fine swings and 
a teeter board there. 

“You’ll have to adopt that youngster, Doc¬ 
tor,” said Uncle Weary. “We will never be 
able to get him away from here.” 


SILAS CROCKETT 


163 


“Well, lie looks worth adopting,” said the 
old man, taking his seat in the automobile. 

Tony drove them to the little village where 
the doctor lived, and on the way the old man 
told Uncle Weary more of the crippled soldier’s 
history. 

‘‘He was one of the most promising young 
men in this town,” said the doctor, “born and 
brought up right here. His mother w T as a dress¬ 
maker, a very fine woman and ambitious for 
her bright boy. She worked and slaved from 
morning till night, saving every penny she 
could to send Silas to college. The boy went 
to our State University for two years, making 
good. He was the pride and hope of his mother 
and of the whole village for that matter. Then 
she died and Silas came home and went to work. 
He was all broken up, of course, but that splen¬ 
did old Mrs. Cavendish took him right in and 
gave him a home. Good thing for her, too, for 
she has no children and he was like a son. They 
were perfectly devoted to each other. Well, 
Silas was saving up to go back to college when 


16 4 ) 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


we went into the war. The boy thought he 
ought to enlist and she wouldn’t hold him back. 
He came home a few months ago the wreck you 
saw him.” 

“What chance is there of his recovery?” 
asked Uncle Weary. 

“Oh, I think a very good chance,” returned 
the doctor hopefully. “He has youth and a 
good constitution back of him. Those are great 
helps, and then he has a good home with the 
best of care besides. I can see a little change 
for the better already, and if he has no set¬ 
backs his brain will probably be all right in 
a year.” 

“Then you think the fall yesterday did not 
injure him seriously,” said Uncle Weary, much 
relieved. 

“I can’t tell positively till I have examined 
him in the morning,” returned the old doctor, 
“but I think the fall jarred his spine and set 
his head to aching. The trouble is with his 
brain. When he has those terrible headaches he 
is quite exhausted, as you saw him to-day.” 


SILAS CROCKETT 


165 

“I suppose he could go to a soldiers’ home 
and have good care all his life,” remarked 
Uncle Weary. 

“Some one suggested that to Silas one day,” 
said the doctor, laughing, “and he almost had 
a fit. I think he’d go plumb crazy if he had 
to go to one of those places. The quiet home 
life he leads now is just the thing for him. He 
loves his foster mother dearly and is very 
happy with her. And he is a great comfort to 
her. She often says she doesn’t know how 
she’d get along without him. I don’t know how 
he manages to do it, but he helps a great deal 
about the place, waters the garden, feeds the 
chickens, takes care of the old horse and all 
that.” 

“Yes, I see,” said Uncle Weary. “That’s 
all right and a good thing for him to do chores 
at home, but he’d better not try to run an auto¬ 
mobile on the public highway—it’s too danger¬ 
ous.” 

“Yes, that was too bad to-day,” assented the 
doctor. “He never got away alone before. 


166 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


Somebody always goes with him. They take 
turns and make him think he is giving them 
a great treat when he takes them in the car. 
They pretend they want to learn to drive, and 
so keep their hands on the driving wheel to 
guide the machine. To-day he hobbled to the 
village where the car is kept, and managed to 
get away from the place without being seen. 
He’s simply crazy about that machine.’’ 

“He must have some money to own a car 
and keep it,” remarked Uncle Weary. 

“The poor boy hasn’t a cent besides his pen¬ 
sion,” said the doctor, “and that’s only about 
enough to support him. His foster mother has 
only a small income.” 

“That doesn’t sound much like buying a 
car,” said Uncle Weary. 

‘ ‘ The children of this village bought that car 
for Silas,” said the doctor proudly. “When 
they found he wanted one so much, they set 
to work to get it for him. The blacksmith had 
a friend in the next town who had an old Ford 
to sell for a hundred dollars, the kids raised 


SILAS CROCKETT 


167 


twenty-five dollars picking berries. The man 
let them have the car, paying that sum down 
and promising to raise the rest as soon as they 
could. The little duffers are working like 
nailers, collecting penny by penny, and they 
hope by winter to get it all paid up.” 

The old doctor took out his handkerchief and 
blew his big nose and wiped his eyes, remark¬ 
ing that the dust was pretty bad at this time 
of year. 

By this time they had reached the doctor’s 
home. Uncle Weary promised to come for him 
at seven o’clock that evening to take him to 
see Silas, and Tony turned the car around to 
go back to Allserene. He had not said a word 
on the way, but Uncle Weary noticed that his 
eyes were red and that he, too, was obliged to 
use his handkerchief. 


CHAPTER XIV 


CAMP SILAS 

W HEN they returned to the camp they 
found Granny and Aunt Em preparing 
the evening meal. The boys had brought water, 
set the table and fed Jip and were now playing 
with the 44 teeter board.” 

Tony hurried to them and said in an excited 
whisper, “Come with me, boys, I want to talk 
with you.” 

They followed him, wondering at his manner 
until they were beyond the hearing of the older 
folks, when Tony dropped to the ground and 
motioned to the boys to sit beside him. 

“Why, what is the matter, Tony? Has any¬ 
thing happened?” asked Eddie in a puzzled 
tone. 

For answer the young Italian, still very 

much excited, began to tell them the story of 

168 


CAMP SILAS 


169 


Silas as he had heard it from the doctor, and 
finished by saying, “And now shall we not give 
a 4 show’ to-night to help those little children 
to bny the car for the poor young man?” 

Eddie gave a loud whoop and turned a 
somersault. “Why, of course,” he shouted. 
“What a splendid idea; let’s go right to work 
to get ready.” 

“These grounds are first rate for a ‘show,’ ” 
remarked Archie. “The benches and tables 
v 7 ill hold lots of people.” 

“But first you must ask your uncle and aunt 
if they are willing,” said Tony. 

Just then they heard Uncle Weary’s whistle, 
which they knew w 7 as the call to supper. They 
were all soon seated on their camp stools at 
the table discussing w r ays and means for the 
evening entertainment, for, just as the boys 
expected, Uncle Weary, Aunt Em, and Granny 
were all much pleased w 7 ith Tony’s suggestion 
and agreed to help in every way possible. As 
soon as the meal was finished the three per¬ 
formers ran off to arrange the program. 


170 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


They were now so experienced that re¬ 
hearsals were not necessary and they quickly 
decided on the numbers they would have for 
the show. Uncle Weary was asked to drive 
to the village to consult the doctor and to pro¬ 
vide lemons and sugar for the lemonade, and 
to put up the necessary notices in the post- 
office and other places. Aunt Em had to print 
some new ones, putting the name of ‘ 4 Silas 
Crockett’’ in place of “Tony Madalo.” 

“I am so proud of Tony for thinking of 
this,” said Granny as she helped about the 
printing. 

“Yes,” said Aunt Em. “Wasn’t it generous 
of him? Will is very much pleased.” 

Tony drove Uncle Weary to the doctor’s 
home first. The old man was very much 
touched when he was told of Tony’s scheme. 
“That’s fine,” he said, “only you’ll have to 
ask a very small sum for your entertainment. 
This community is very poor and everybody is 
feeling the hard times.” 


CAMP SILAS 


171 


“We liave no admission fee.” replied Uncle 
Weary. “We take up a contribution as they 
do in church or Sunday-school and expect only 
those who have the money and feel interested 
to give what they wish.” 

“All,” said the doctor, “that’s all right. 
You’ll probably get more that way than by ad¬ 
mission and you’ll have a good crowd. Noth¬ 
ing like a free show to draw people out. But 
how are you going to light the place!” he 
asked. 

“We thought of buying Japanese lanterns 
at the store. They have them, don’t they!” 

“No, we can’t afford such gimcracks,” re¬ 
turned the old man. “When the pumpkins are 
ripe in the fall the boys make jack-o’-lanterns 
and hang them in the trees and sometimes they 
light up the place with bonfires. Now that’s a 
good idea! Why don’t you have a bonfire!” 

“Well, I’ll ask the folks what they think 
about it,” said Uncle Weary. 

He told them at the camp when he returned 


172 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


about the doctor’s suggestion and the boys de¬ 
cided that a bonfire would be great fun—they 
would light the grounds in that way. 

“We won’t make much,” said Eddie, “unless 
Uncle Weary will let us give some of our own 
money.” 

“He won’t care,” said Archie, “if we go 
without something to give ’em the money we 
save that way. My mother gave me two dol¬ 
lars once for going without candy for a month, 
so I could give it to the Junior Red Cross. 
Gee, but I was glad when the month was up!” 

“But what can we give up?” asked Eddie. 

“Sodas,” answered Archie promptly. “We 
each spend a dollar a week for ’em, you know. 
We can easily go without one week and give 
the dollar for Silas’ ‘Lizzie.’ Uncle Weary 
will think that’s all right.” 

“I will go without mine for two weeks and 
give two dollars,” said Tony enthusiastically. 

Eddie had to stop and think a moment before 
he could quite decide to make such a sacrifice, 
for he was very fond of his daily soda. But 


CAMP SILAS 


173 


at last he said cheerfully, 4 4 Well, all right, I 
can stand it if you two can.” 

When they told Uncle Weary their plan he 
said, “Yes, that’s all right. Good idea. But 
I’m afraid it will be rather hard on the drug 
stores.” 

“Uncle Weary, what will you give up to save 
a dollar for Silas?” asked Archie, grinning. 

They all laughed at this unexpected question, 
and Aunt Em said, “He can give up smoking 
for a week.” 

“Well, I will,” said her husband. “That’s 
only fair. I guess it won’t be any harder for 
me than for the boys.” 

“I will do my own washing for two weeks 
for my dollar,” said Aunt Em. “And what 
will you do, mother?” she asked, turning to 
Granny. 

The old lady was ready with her answer. 
“If Will will give me a dollar I’ll knit him two 
pairs of socks,” she said. 

“All right,” said Uncle Weary. “I suppose 
I need new socks, don’t I, Em?” 


174 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Indeed you do,” she said. “Only I think 
a dollar is too small a price for them.” 

But Granny refused to take any more and 
so the matter was left. 

When Uncle Weary told them what the doc¬ 
tor had said about the poverty and hard times 
of the people in the village they decided not 
to sell the lemonade but to give it to the audi¬ 
ence as a treat. He had borrowed a large new 
tin pan at the doctor’s to serve as a punch 
bowl, and all hands helped in the familiar op¬ 
eration of squeezing the lemons for the lem¬ 
onade. 

Uncle Weary went for the doctor at seven 
o’clock as he had promised, and found that the 
doctor’s wife had been busily working for the 
entertainment. She had used her telephone to 
spread the news about it to the few people 
in the village who had phones and had sent 
the two boys of the place, who had bicycles, 
with notes to others and to farmers’ homes in 
the country. She had also telephoned to a 
friend in a neighboring town, begging her to 


CAMP SILAS 


175 


come over in her auto and to bring along her 
friends. She had suggested that the four young 
men who had carried Silas home that day 
should go back with the doctor to the camp to 
help prepare the bonfire and to be of use in 
other preparations. The young men were great 
friends of Silas’—they had grown up with him 
and were very glad to help on any scheme which 
would benefit him. So they rode back to the 
camp in the auto and the doctor went on to 
see Silas. 

There were 'three long rough tables on the 
picnic grounds with the legs driven firmly in 
the ground. Archie found that the tops of 
these tables were not fastened on to the legs 
and could easily be lifted off. One of the young 
men explained that these tops were taken off 
and stored in winter to protect them from 
snow and sleet. The little boy, who was very 
ingenious, had immediately thought of the plan 
of putting these three tops together on lower 
posts driven into the ground, making a plat¬ 
form about three feet high. 


176 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

“Well, Sonny, that’s a bright idea,” said 
one young man. “Of course it can be done 
as slick as grease.” 

One of them ran off to the nearest neighbor 
to borrow an ax and a saw, and the others be¬ 
gan to gather sticks for the bonfire. There 
were plenty of loose branches and chips lying 
about in the little grove, and soon a big pile 
was arranged all ready to light when the per¬ 
formers were ready. The young man who had 
gone for the tools brought them back presently 
and with them a strong wooden box which the 
farmer had loaned him. He said there were 
three others like it that they could have, and 
proposed that instead of driving legs into the 
ground they should use the boxes at the corners 
of the platform, laying some planks the farmer 
would let them have on the boxes in such a way 
as to fasten them together and make a founda¬ 
tion for the platform. 

This good idea was carried out, and in a 
short time the “Allserene Minstrels” had a 


CAMP SILAS 177 

nice little platform, the bonfire on one side 
of it and the tent on the other. 

While Eddie was dancing aronnd on it and 
shouting his delight, a large woman in a sun- 
bonnet came up the road with a heavy bundle 
in a baby carriage. 

“Is this yere the place where the show is 
to be at?” she called out to the little boy. 

Eddie ran to her and said politely, “Yes, this 
is where the ‘Allserene Minstrels’ are going 
to give a benefit to-night for Mr. Silas 
Crockett.” 

The woman took off her big sunbonnet and 
began to fan her red face with it. “Well, now,” 
she said, smiling down on Eddie’s cheerful face, 
“that’s right kind of you folks. We do sure 
appreciate it. It was gittin’ to be a pretty 
hard job for our young ones to raise all that 
money for poor Silas.” 

“Oh, we like to do it,” said Eddie. “Be¬ 
sides, my father says all soldiers belong to all 
of us, and we can’t do too much for them.” 


178 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Well, your pa’s about right,” said the 
woman, walking with Eddie to the platform, 
pushing her baby carriage ahead of her. 
“We’ve got five of ’em in this place and we’re 
doin’ everything we can for ’em and ’tisn’t 
often strangers come along like you folks to 
help us out.” 

“Is that your baby?” asked Eddie, pointing 
to the bundle in the little, old carriage. 

“No,” she answered, laughing, “my baby’s 
a great big girl, ’most grown up. I’ve brought 
you something I thought you’d like for your 
show. Sam Graham got some boxes and planks 
over to our house for your stage and told us 
what you’re up to and I thought you’d like a 
carpet to cover them old rough boards and 
make your stage look a little nicer.” 

“Oh, that’s perfectly grand!” exclaimed Ed¬ 
die, helping her to lift the heavy rag carpet. 
It was old and faded, but it was clean and 
whole and was large enough to cover the little 
platform and hang to the ground over the front 
edge. 


CAMP SILAS 


179 


“We never had anything so nice before,’’ 
cried Eddie. “It’s perfectly lovely.” 

The woman stood with her hands on her hips, 
laughing, evidently very much pleased with 
Eddie’s appreciation of her gift, and just then 
Archie came up to them with a bouquet of wild 
flowers he had been gathering in the woods. 
It was not his way to express his feelings as 
ardently as Eddie did, but the kind woman 
knew from his smile and his bright eyes that 
he was also much pleased. 

“Where’s your folks?” she asked, glancing 
toward the empty tent. 

“They’ve all gone down to Mrs. Caven¬ 
dish’s to see what the doctor says about Silas,” 
said Eddie. “They’ll be back pretty soon. 
Won’t you sit down and wait for them?” 

Archie ran to the tent and brought out 
Granny’s little rocking chair. The woman sat 
down in it and fanned her pleasant freckled 
face with her sunbonnet while she chatted. 


CHAPTER XV 


THE SILAS CROCKETT BENEFIT 

S HE had not long to wait, for very soon the 
auto came back with the doctor, Uncle 
Weary and his wife and Granny. Tony took 
the doctor home, and the other three came for¬ 
ward to meet their visitor. They were very 
much pleased with her contribution to the 
show, and her friendliness, and sat down on 
camp stools to talk to her. 

44 Seems like you’re 4 good Samaritan’ sure 
enough, to do what ye did for our poor Silas 
to-day and then to help our kids to buy his 
car,” she began. 

44 We didn’t do much for Silas,” said Uncle 
Weary, 4 4 and you must thank our boys for the 
show to-night. They proposed it and they are 
the performers. We wouldn’t have thought of 
it.” 


180 


THE SILAS CROCKETT BENEFIT 181 


“Oh, but Uncle Weary, Tony thought of it 
first,’’ said Eddie. 

“Tony couldn’t do much without you and 
Archie,” said Granny, smiling. 

“Well, now ain’t it fine for the young ones 
to do like they do nowadays,” exclaimed their 
visitor. “Now in my day we never thought of 
earnin’ money to help the soldiers or anybody 
else. We just took what was give to us and 
asked for more.” 

“Yes,” assented Granny warmly. “I am 
very proud of our boys and I think it’s won¬ 
derful for the children of this village to do 
what they have for Silas. They must have 
worked very hard and made real sacrifices to 
have done so much.” 

“Oh, come now,” said Uncle Weary, “that’s 
no way to talk before children. You’ll give 
them the big head worse than they have now, 
and that’s not necessary. Children like to do 
these things. It gives them something inter¬ 
esting to do, and they like to be praised for it.” 

“Well, I guess there’s something in that, too, 


182 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


and I expect they ain’t very different from 
grown-ups. I hain’t seen many folks, little or 
big, hiding their tallow dips under bushel bas¬ 
kets,” said the newcomer. She cackled gaily, 
opening a wide mouth empty of teeth. And 
then, like most other visitors, she became much 
interested in the comforts and conveniences of 
Allserene as Granny showed them to her. 

4 ‘My sakes!” she exclaimed when the inspec¬ 
tion was finished. “You folks must be havin’ 
the time of your life. It’s most too good to be 
true, travelin’ round this way and takin’ your 
house along with you.” 

“Yes, it is nice,” said Granny sympatheti¬ 
cally, “and when you are as old as I am you 
will perhaps have the same experience. You 
see, I waited a long while for it.” 

“Well, I dunno,” said the woman, putting on 
her sunbonnet and rising to go. “I expect I’d 
git pretty sick of gallivantin’ round the coun¬ 
try this way and I’d be mighty glad to see my 
good old cook stove once more, and the sun 
risin’ in the same place every mornin’.” 


THE SILAS CROCKETT BENEFIT 183 


“Yes, I’m sure you would/’ said Em, join¬ 
ing in the cheerful laugh of their visitor, who 
now hurried home, after promising to come to 
the show in the evening, bringing all her folks 
with her. 

The performance that night of the All¬ 
serene Minstrels was one of the very best they 
ever had, and was greatly appreciated by 
the large crowd that came to see and hear 
it. 

More than a dozen automobiles were ranged 
in a circle around the seats which were filled 
with children and country folks, for the doc¬ 
tor’s energetic wife had reached a good many 
people with her telephone in near-by villages 
and towns, and as every one in the region knew 
about Silas through the weekly papers, and of 
the efforts of the children to buy him a car, 
a great many came, some of them from fifteen 
and twenty miles away, to show their interest 
and help the good cause. 

Every one there was astonished and delighted 
with the show. The great blazing bonfire on 


184 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


one side added very much to the beautiful spec¬ 
tacle and the impromptu stage with its carpet 
was a great success. Rough boxes were covered 
with rugs and draperies Mrs. Cavendish had 
loaned and stood at the corners of the stage, 
each one holding a big bouquet of goldenrod 
and other wild flowers in old-fashioned churns 
and large butter firkins also loaned by near-by 
neighbors. Allserene was almost covered with 
flags and brightly lighted by auto lamps and 
lanterns, half hidden by the draperies, and 
when the three performers, in their gay cos¬ 
tumes, came bounding onto the stage there 
was a great shout of applause from the audi¬ 
ence. The program was much like those they 
were used to having, Uncle Weary as usual giv¬ 
ing out the numbers. Archie and Eddie played 
and danced and Tony sang. By this time he 
was entirely over his timidity and bashfulness 
arid enjoyed his singing as much as any one 
there. He looked very beautiful in his bright 
peasant’s costume with the dark pine trees for 
a background and the strong lights of the bon- 



He looked very beautiful in Ids bright peasant’s costume 







THE SILAS CROCKETT BENEFIT 185 

fire and the lamps of Allserene lighting his 
face and form brilliantly. 

The audience was so delighted with his per¬ 
formance that they insisted on his repeating 
his songs again and again until he was fairly 
hoarse from yodeling and had to stop. And 
then, by Uncle Weary’s request, the good old 
minister of the village mounted the little stage 
and talked very eloquently to the people. He 
told them in very simple language the object 
of the show and spoke of the generosity and 
kindness of these strangers who were now their 
friends, who had stopped on their way to do 
this good deed. No fees had been asked for 
the excellent performance they had given, but 
it was hoped that every one there would give 
all he could afford, to help the dear children 
to provide a pleasure for their wounded hero 
whom everybody loved. 

When he had finished, a big, roughly dressed 
man on one of the benches jumped up and 
shouted: “Look here, folks. You’ve heard what 
the parson said. What kind of sneaks and 


186 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

I 

cowards are we goin’ to be if we don’t give 
them kids our bottom dollar to-night? Here’s 
mine,” he went on, waving a dollar bill over 
his head. “I was expectin’ to give it to the 
tax collector. My youngsters have to go with¬ 
out molasses on their pancakes these days be¬ 
cause their dad is so hard up. But what’s that 
compared with what Silas had to suffer? I 
guess they will have enough of a sweet taste 
in their mouths when the money’s raised for 
Silas’ tin Lizzie.” 

“Pass around that hat quick!” interrupted 
another man in one of the autos. “My money’s 
burning a hole in my pocket.” 

Tony, Archie, and Eddie were passing tin 
plates around the crowd, and nickels, dimes, and 
quarters tinkled into them from every hand, 
while many bills lay softly on the silver and 
copper coins. Everybody there gave some¬ 
thing, from a single penny to a ten-dollar bill. 
When it was announced from the stage that the 
collection amounted to a hundred and fifty dol¬ 
lars there was a great shout and clapping of 


THE SILAS CROCKETT BENEFIT 187 

hands. A young man stood up in his auto¬ 
mobile, and, after sounding the horn of his 
car for silence, said: “I think it is now in 
order to give a vote of thanks to the 4 Allserene 
Minstrels’ for their excellent show and for giv¬ 
ing us this opportunity to do our duty. All 
in favor say aye.” 

Of course, everybody voted “aye” at the 
top of his voice, and there was a call for the 
whole party to appear on the stage, for it was 
well understood that Uncle Weary and his wife 
and their foster mother had helped as much as 
any one to make the entertainment a success. 
Granny and Aunt Em were pushed and pulled 
by friendly hands and almost forced to join 
the boys on the platform, but when they looked 
around for Uncle Weary he was not to be found. 
They finally gave up the search and proceeded 
to give three rousing cheers for the Allserene 
troupe and then some one started the national 
anthem and at once everybody began to sing. 

After that the lemonade was passed around, 
there was a general shaking of hands and a 


188 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

hum of conversation before the audience at last 
drifted away. Uncle Weary had not returned 
and finally, after waiting for him to come back, 
the party concluded to walk down the road to 
the home of Mrs. Cavendish, expecting to find 
him there. They were not mistaken. He was 
talking in whispers to the doctor, who was 
standing with him by the garden gate, and as 
he walked back to the camp with the family he 
told them the good news; Silas had wakened 
from his long sleep and, though weak, was sane 
and quite like himself. He had no recollection 
of the incidents of the day and the doctor found 
that his spine was not injured by his fall and 
that he would probably be up and about as 
usual in a day or two. 

“The doctor thinks he would better not see 
any of us again,” said Uncle Weary, “as the 
sight of us would probably bring back the ex¬ 
citement he had lived through and make him 
worse again.’’ 

“We’d better start our journey in the morn¬ 
ing, don’t you think, Will?” asked his wife. 


THE SILAS CROCKETT BENEFIT 189 


“Yes, bright and early, before any of these 
people can come round to see us. They’d be 
sure to want to steal our boys,” he replied. 

“Well, I think it’s awful nice in this place. 
I wish we could camp here a week like we did 
in Briarville,” said Eddie. 

“ ‘As we did,’ my child,” corrected Granny. 

“Oh, dear,” said the boy mournfully, “I 
never can get my grammar right. I keep mak¬ 
ing that mistake all the time. It comes out 
when I don’t know it.” 

“Oh, yes, you can, dear,” said Granny, 
brightly. “You are learning to speak correctly 
so fast that I shall soon be out of a job and 
that will be pretty hard on an old schoolma’am, 
don’t you think?” 

“Did you teach school, Granny?” asked 
Archie. 

“Yes, dear,” she replied. “When I was 
seventeen I taught a country school. I married 
at eighteen and had children of my own to teach 
at home after that.” 

“I wisht I could a been one of ’em,” said 


190 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

Eddie lovingly, as he put his arm round her 
waist. 

When an early morning start was planned 
the party always made as many preparations 
as possible the night before. So, although the 
hour was late, after the boys were in bed and 
asleep the elders packed the clothing, stored the 
food, and prepared the automobile for the next 
day’s journey. It was their intention to leave 
notes with their good-bys to Mrs. Cavendish, 
the doctor, and the kind woman who had loaned 
the carpet, but to their surprise those three 
people appeared in the camp in the morning 
about seven o’clock just as Allserene was be¬ 
ing fastened to the automobile and the party 
were ready to leave. 

“Why, how did you know we were going this 
morning?” asked Aunt Em, as she shook hands 
with the newcomers. 

“I suspected that you were up to that dodge 
when I passed here last night on my way home 
and saw Tony oiling the car and the rest of you 
moving about,” said the doctor. 


THE SILAS CROCKETT BENEFIT 191 


“And so he came back early this morning to 
get Mrs. Simms and me before Silas wakes. 
We just couldn’t let you go without saying 
‘God bless you,’ ” said Mrs. Cavendish fer¬ 
vently, holding Granny’s hands in hers. 

“Me, too,” said the good Mrs. Simms. “It 
was right kind of the doc to give me the chance 
to come and try to tell ye how much we ap¬ 
preciated what ye done for us. I can’t really 
do it though—you’ll have to guess what I want 
to say. But we shan’t forget ye.” She handed 
Aunt Em a large paper bag of freshly fried 
doughnuts, saying simply: “Them’s for your 
nice boys. I wish each one was a hunk of gold 
—they deserve it.” 

“Oh, they’ll enjoy these much more than 
gold. Thank you very much,” said Aunt 
Em. 

Mrs. Cavendish also had parting gifts for the 
boys. She gave each of them a photograph of 
Silas in his uniform taken just before he left 
for the war and, what was more precious to 
them, each a brass button from his worn-out 


192 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


uniform, which they promised to wear as pen¬ 
dants on their watch chains. 

At last the travelers were seated in the auto¬ 
mobile. Tony started the engine and they were 
off, all of them waving cordial good-bys to their 
new friends. They passed through the little 
village and took the highway which led them 
through a dreary stretch of sandy country with 
its small unpainted farmhouses and poor 
stunted crops in the fields, its small pine-trees 
and worthless swamps and a look of poverty 
and “bad luck” over everything. 

“Poor country,” remarked Uncle Weary. 
“It’s a wonder that anybody settled here when 
there was so much good rich land a little fur¬ 
ther on. Must be a very ignorant, worthless 
class of people who would choose such places 
for homes.” 

“Why, I think the people here are lovely, and 
the country is beautiful,” said Aunt Em. 


CHAPTER XVI 


A LEISURELY WEEK 

TN a few hours they reached a very different 
country. Once more they slipped along 
over excellent roads past great fields of corn 
and grain ripening in the sun. They stopped 
for milk, eggs and butter at well-kept and often 
fine farmhouses, everywhere meeting the kind¬ 
ness, friendliness, and hospitality common in 

♦ 

the Western states. The towns and villages as 
a rule had a prosperous, up-to-date appearance 
and, what astonished Aunt Em, a look often 
of age and permanence shown in their substan- 
tial buildings, their broad sidewalks, and paved 
streets and, above all, in the residence streets 
lined with fine, large trees shading pretty, taste¬ 
ful homes. 

“Why, this is like a place at home, only big¬ 
ger and finer,* * Aunt Em said one day, as they 

193 


194 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

drove through the principal street of a large 
town in Illinois. 

“Of course. What did you expect?” said 
her husband. “Don’t you know that the folks 
in this town are probably seventy-five per cent. 
Americans and half of them from New England 
or else descendants of New Englanders?” 

“I suppose I knew it, but I didn’t realize it,” 
replied his wife. 

“ ’Course you didn’t. No one in the East 
does know what is going on out in this big rich 
country till they come out and have a look at 
it.” 

“Things seen are greater than things heard,” 
quoted Granny from an old poet whom she still 
loved, although he was now quite out of 
fashion. 

On the third day after leaving Camp Silas, 
they drove into a town not far from the Mis¬ 
sissippi River. Mrs. Cavendish had promised 
to send them a letter directed to this place to 
tell them the news about the crippled soldier. 
The post-office was near the center of the town, 


A LEISURELY WEEK 


195 


and there they found the expected message. 

Mrs. Cavendish wrote that Silas was now 
quite well again and did not remember anything 
about his accident or meeting the Trailer Trav¬ 
elers, and every one who saw him was warned 
not to mention the subject. While he was still 
in bed the young men of the village had lifted 
the ditched “Lizzie’’ to the road, and the black¬ 
smith had been able to repair it so that Silas 
could once more use it. He had been persuaded 
to adopt a boy and made to think that the boy 
needed his care and that it would be a fine thing 
to teach him to run the auto. They had found 
a bright little fellow who was willing to play 
this role. He had already won the confidence 
and affection of Silas and had been able to keep 
his hand on the steering wheel, pretending that 
he was learning to drive the car in that way. 

Enough money had been raised at the ‘‘bene¬ 
fit’ ’ to pay for the car, to put it in good order, 
and to buy Silas a new uniform. The letter 
was very well w T ritten in a clear, concise, old- 
fashioned hand and ended with a warm expres- 


196 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

sion of thanks for what the travelers had done 
for her dear soldier hoy. The whole commun¬ 
ity, she said, ^would never forget how they had 
entertained “angels unaware’’ and how gladly 
they would welcome them if they ever came 
their way again. 

“I don’t see why they should thank us so 
much,” said Eddie, when the letter was read 
aloud. “We ought to thank them, for we got 
more fun out of the show than they did.” 

“Well, I agree with Eddie,” said Aunt Em. 
“The people we saw in that forlorn little vil¬ 
lage, Mrs. Cavendish and Silas, the doctor and 
his wife and the toothless woman who brought 
us the rag carpet, seemed to me like old friends 
and much more like genuine Vermonters than 
any others we have seen on our travels.” 

“Yet you thought that township the dreari¬ 
est, most forlorn country you ever saw. You 
wanted us to hurry out of it as soon as pos¬ 
sible,” remarked Uncle Weary. 

“Yes, I know, but that was before we found 
Silas,” she said. 


A LEISURELY WEEK 


197 


The movie-making experience and the Silas 
Crockett adventure had tired them all with their 
excitements and prepared them to enjoy more 
than ever the restful, uneventful days of the 
week that followed. They found that fifty miles 
a day was all Granny ought to ride and as there 
was no occasion to hurry they fell into the 
habit of arriving at their camping place before 
noon and spending their afternoons and eve¬ 
nings in a very leisurely way, the three elders 
reading, writing, and sleeping or playing games, 
and the three boys roaming in the woods, hunt¬ 
ing, fishing, swimming, or playing ball with vil¬ 
lage boys or going to the movies. They were 
growing hardy and brown, and Aunt Em com¬ 
plained that she had hard work to get enough 
for them to eat, for they had such prodigious 
appetites. 

They had for the present given up their 
shows for the Tony Madalo Fund, but con¬ 
tinued to earn money for it in another way. 
They found every day in the woods and pas¬ 
tures and by the roadside a great quantity of 


198 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


ripe blackberries and huckleberries, and Archie 
one day suggested that they pick and sell these 
fruits as they had done the first summer they 
had camped with Uncle Weary, and give the 
money they would make in this way to Tony’s 
fund. This plan suited Tony and Eddie, and 
as Uncle Weary and Aunt Em approved of it 
and Granny promised to mend their clothes 
when they were torn by briars, they set apart 
two hours every day to this enterprise. They 
went to bed early and rose at six in the morn¬ 
ing, and as Allserene broke camp and started 
on the day’s journey about nine o’clock, they 
had at least two hours while the day was cool 
to pick their berries. Granny and Aunt Em 
put the fruit in boxes and Uncle Weary sold 
it for the boys, usually at hotels in the towns 
they passed through. 

They had at the end of the week made so 
much money and added it to the fund that they 
had now two hundred dollars. They would 
have to earn one hundred more before there 
would be enough to bring the Italian family to 


A LEISURELY WEEK 


199 


America. The boys expected to give some more 
shows to make out the required sum when a 
very unexpected and thrilling incident occurred 
which enabled them to raise that amount in one 

short hour. 


CHAPTER XVII 


THE FIRE 

T HE suburbs of cities, as a rule, have much 
the same appearance, especially those of 
the Western states, and the city our travelers 
were entering was no exception to the rule. 
First they saw small and large houses stand¬ 
ing in gardens and lawns, sometimes in groups, 
again quite isolated, with stretches of empty 
unkept land about them. Then factories and 
rows of tenement houses all looking alike, and 
busy little trolley cars bobbing along the street 
which led into the closely built and noisy city. 

As the travelers rode slowly along through 
the suburbs of the place, although they were 
seeing it for the first time, everything looked 
very familiar to them and was what they ex¬ 
pected to see, until they entered a narrow, 

crooked street which looked very strange. The 

200 


v 


THE FIRE 


201 


houses were built close together, were very 
irregular in shape, some small and low, others 
high and narrow, and were painted in every 
color of the rainbow. The people walking and 
lounging in the street seemed to match the 
houses. Most of them wore very picturesque 
costumes of bright colors, a number of women 
had large earrings in their ears, and carried 
heavy baskets on their heads, and flocks of 
ragged, dirty children played and quarreled in 
doorways and on the steps of a large stone 
church where they could be in the shade, for 
the day was hot and the rough cobblestones 
of the street and the narrow concrete side¬ 
walks were quite unbearable for naked feet. 

“Why, it’s just like a picture of an Italian 
street,” exclaimed Aunt Em. 

“It is Italy!” cried Tony. “And these peo¬ 
ple are my countrymen.” He was very much 
excited, his lips trembling and his eyes glitter¬ 
ing. 

“It certainly isn’t an American street,” said 
Uncle Weary. “But how in the dickens did 


202 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


Italy jump across the ocean and land in this 
particular spot? You might look for it in New 
York or Chicago, perhaps, but I can’t see any 
reason for settling out here.” 

“I cannot guess the reason,” said Tony, “but 
it is here and I am very happy.” 

“Shucks,” said Uncle Weary. “I guess we’ll 
never make an American out of you.” 

“Could they make an Italian of you if you 
were landed in Italy?” asked Aunt Em. 

“No, I guess not, unless they caught me 
pretty young,” he replied, laughing. 

The auto stood very close to the sidewalk in 
the shadow of a tall building which had many 
windows and little gaily painted balconies con¬ 
taining bright blooming flowers in pots and tin 
cans. Tony looked up at these cheerful re¬ 
minders of home with loving eyes, as though 
greeting old friends, and just then two work¬ 
men passed the car on the narrow sidewalk. 
Their clothes and hands were very much soiled, 
they wore ragged old hats and carried shovels 
and pick-axes on their shoulders. They were 


THE FIRE 


203 


evidently going home to their dinners and had 
a tired slouching gait and looked very sober and 
dull, but the moment they caught a glimpse 
of Tony their faces lighted up with smiles that 
showed all their white teeth. They stopped by 
the car and thrust out their grimy hands to¬ 
ward him, saying, “Bueno journo, country¬ 
man/ ? 

Tony did not take their offered hands; he fell 
on their necks, in turn giving each one a kiss 
on both cheeks, and then all three laughed and 
shouted and talked together as though they 
had been long separated friends. 

The little boys were astonished and almost 
shocked to see men kissing each other, and all 
of the party thought Tony had found brothers 
or at least cousins, he seemed so glad to see 
them. But after jabbering excitedly in Italian 
for a moment he suddenly remembered where 
he was and turned to introduce his new friends. 
He had to ask their names, and Uncle Weary 
said laughingly as he shook their grimy hands, 
“We can’t tell whether we are in Italy or the 


204 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

United States, but I hope you can talk Amer¬ 
ican, for I don’t speak your language.” 

“Sure we can,” said the elder of the men. 
“We are Americans now.” 

They took off their hats and bowed politely 
to Granny and Aunt Em and shook hands with 
the boys when Tony went on with his introduc¬ 
tions, and Granny said: “ I imagined you were 
born in Italy. We thought you knew Tony 
there—he was so glad to see you.” 

“Yes, Signora, that is our native country,” 
one of them answered. “We came to America 
when we were young men.” 

“You brought a part of Italy with you, I 
think, ’ 9 remarked Aunt Em, looking up the pic¬ 
turesque street. 

“Ah, Signora, that is what our wives and 
mothers made us do,” said the man, rather 
apologetically. “They were homesick and we 
made our houses as much like those of the old 
country as we could to please them and make 
them more contented.” 





THE FIRE 


205 


“They speak English in their homes, don’t 
they?” she asked. 

The man shook his head. “No, Signora, not 
generally,” he replied. “They love their 
mother tongue too well, and then most of the 
older ones think it is too much trouble to learn 
a foreign language.” 

“Our children learn English in the schools,” 
remarked the other man, “and when they are 
grown they will speak nothing else. I think 
they will make good Americans.” 

“Yes, that’s what happens in a new coun¬ 
try,” remarked Uncle Weary. “You can’t 
make people over in one generation.” 

“I think it is fine for people of one nation 
to love each other as you seem to do,” remarked 
Granny. 

“Ah, Signora,” said the elder man, his face 
lighting, “we cannot help it. It is in our blood. 
We Italians are one big family. When we see 
one of our race, like this young man, he is our 
brother, though we do not know his name.” 


206 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


He put his arm affectionately over Tony’s 
shoulder, and the latter, looking up rather tim¬ 
idly in Uncle Weary’s face, said in a low voice: 

“Mr. Williams, this man tells me there is a 
family living here from my own village in 
Italy. I would like to see them.” 

“Sure,” said Uncle Weary heartily. “Go 
right along and find them. I’ll come back to 
this spot to get you about nine o’clock to¬ 
night. ’ ’ 

He pushed Tony out of the car, and, taking 
his place at the wheel, backed quickly out of 
the narrow street and disappeared before the 
astonished young man realized what had hap¬ 
pened. But he was a very happy Tony when 
he found himself in a little apartment of three 
rooms high up from the street in one of the 
tall buildings. 

A young man in shirt sleeves, holding a little 
boy of two in his lap, sat in a chair by an open 
window. He was evidently waiting for his sup¬ 
per which his wife was cooking on an oil-stove 
in a dark corner of the tiny room. When the 


THE FIRE 


207 


door opened and Tony walked in with his con¬ 
ductors, the pair looked at him for an instant 
in dumb wonder, and then both of them broke 
into loud shouts of recognition and welcome. 
Such a hugging and kissing, such a hubbub of 
joyful laughs and cries and jabbering he had 
not felt or heard since he came to America. 

The two men who had brought him there 
soon left him to go home to their suppers, 
promising to come back again in the evening 
with their wives. The young man, whose name 
was Victor Vitilli, insisted on taking off Tony’s 
coat and vest and collar and rolling up his shirt 
sleeves before he sat down to the evening meal 
which was soon ready and served on a rickety 
folding table as near the window as it could 
be placed. Tony was very glad to be rid of 
as many clothes as possible, for the air of the 
little room was very close and hot and the 
fumes of frying sausage and onions almost 
overpowering. 

“Our room is very warm to-night,” said 
Tony’s host. “I am sorry we cannot take you 


208 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


out on our little piazza, but it is now unsafe. 
A week ago I and my wife and children were 
sitting there one evening when we heard a 
crack and saw that the piazza was giving way 
where it was fastened to the house. Our weight 
had been too much for it, and we feared that 
it would go down with us before we could 
scramble through the window into our room.’’ 

“Will not your landlord repair it soon for 
you?” asked Tony. 

Mr. Vitilli lifted his shoulders and spread 
out his hands. “You know landlords,” he said; 
“they promise, but one must wait.” 

“But, Victor, you should ask him once 
more,” said his wife urgently. “I cannot take 
the children to the street for air. It is too 
much to get them back up the stairs and it is 
bad for them to stay indoors all day. We need 
our piazza very much. I am afraid to put the 
babies out there alone and it is not safe for 
me to be there.” 

“Oh, I think your weight with theirs would 
not be too much,” said her husband reassur- 


THE FIRE 


209 


ingly. “ However, to-morrow I will speak to 
the landlord again.’’ 

“Oh, to-morrow!” said the little wife impa¬ 
tiently, now raising her shoulders. 

Tony had accepted very joyfully the pressing 
invitation of these old neighbors to take sup¬ 
per with them, and sat down to eat the familiar 
food, almost too happy for words. The father 
took his little boy on his lap at the table and 
the mother held the fat six-months’-old baby 
in the crook of one arm while she served the 
meal with her other hand. They had been in 
this country only a year, so they could give 
Tony news about his family and of the village 
at home which was very fresh to him and which 
he drank in very eagerly. And all of them 
could not get over exclaiming about the mirac¬ 
ulous way that Tony had dropped down on them 
from the clouds. 

The two men with their wives came in soon 
after supper, and then four other neighbors 
living in apartments in the same house crowded 
into the little room to see Tony, for it seemed 


210 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

that the whole street by this time knew about 
him. 

The table was folded up and set in the nar¬ 
row hall to make more room and a kerosene 
lamp was lighted and placed on the oil cook 
stove, for though there was daylight out of 
doors the light of the one window was not 
enough at this hour to allow the people to 
see each other’s faces. 

The bustling Mrs. Vitilli soon put her sleepy 
babies to bed in a closet of a bedroom which 
had a window opening on to a narrow court, 

and then for the first time in her busy day 

» 

sat down to rest and chat and listen to Tony’s 
story of the wonderful, beautiful life he was 
leading in this country with the kind and gen¬ 
erous American who had saved his life in a 
terrible flood and afterward adopted him and 
given him a chance to make a good living and 
earn money to bring his family to America, and, 
best of all, helped him as they had done to make 
up the big sum required for this purpose. 


THE FIRE 


211 


And then when he had finished his story and 
all the people there had asked Tony all the 
questions they could think of and he had an¬ 
swered them, they sang together some beauti¬ 
ful Italian songs with rich mellow voices. 
This was almost too much for Tony’s nerves. 
The tears streamed down his cheeks, his throat 
was too choked to join in the singing, and then 
suddenly a terrible thing happened. 

They heard the loud honking of an automo¬ 
bile horn from the street below. Tony recog¬ 
nized it as that of Uncle Weary, who had come 
for him. Could it be possible that it was nine 
o’clock? He could not believe it, the hours 
had flown by so swiftly. He jumped up quickly, 
as every one else did, and his host rushed to 
open the door. There were people still sitting 
on the floor blocking his way, and he stumbled 
over them, knocking out a leg of the cook stove 
with his foot. The lamp fell to the floor, broken, 
and its flame set fire to the kerosene which ran 
from the reservoir of the stove. Instantly there 


212 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


was a wild panic in the room. There were 
screams and struggles and a stampede for the 
door. 

Every one seemed to be crazy, or with only 
one thought to escape by way of the stairways. 
Men fought to get ahead of women, the smaller, 
weaker ones were trampled underfoot and the 
narrow, dark, crooked stairway was choked 
with a screaming, swearing mass of human be¬ 
ings. Fortunately there were only eleven peo¬ 
ple all told in the room when the fire started, 
so that they all reached the street alive, though 
there were several broken bones among them. 
Vitilli and his wife with Tony had been car¬ 
ried along with the crowd and found them¬ 
selves at last at the foot of the last flight of 
stairs where they could feel fresh air from 
outside. Vitilli had a broken arm and fainted 
from the pain and was carried by several men 
to a neighbor’s house. His wife remembered 
her sleeping children the moment she could re¬ 
gain her feet and fled screaming up the stair¬ 
way. Tony darted after her, but though he 


THE FIRE 


213 


ran like a deer she was far ahead of him, and 
when he reached the apartment she had brought 
out to the living-room both of the children in 
her arms wrapped in a blanket. The room 
was filled with smoke and flame and the woman 
was gasping for breath as she sank to the floor. 
Tony also was choking with smoke and could 
scarcely keep from falling by her side. She 
called out, “The window,’’ and then became 
quite unconscious. Fortunately the door had 
slammed to as Tony entered the room so that 
there was no draft to carry the smoke and flame 
toward the open window. He remembered the 
little balcony outside of this window, and, real¬ 
izing that this was the only way of escape, he 
swung the babies, which the mother had tied 
securely in a blanket, out on to the floor of 
the balcony and turned to drag the woman out 
there too. He might have left her at this mo¬ 
ment and saved himself, but such a thought 
never entered the brave fellow’s mind. She 
was small and thin and wore a cotton gown 
which caught on fire. He grabbed his coat, 


214 A TRIP WITPI A TRAILER 

which luckily was lying on a chair near at hand, 
and put out the flame on her skirt, and though 
his hands were badly burned, by a desperate 
effort he dragged her to the window and suc¬ 
ceeded in getting her head above the window 
sill. He was tugging with all his might to lift 
her over it when he heard his name called be¬ 
hind him, and, turning his head, he saw Archie 
and Eddie standing behind him, with a rope 
in Archie’s hands. 


CHAPTER XVIII 


THE RESCUERS 

U NCLE WEARY drove into the street at 
just nine o’clock and sounded his horn 
to let Tony know he was there. The boys were 
with him, and all three of them waited silently 
to hear Tony’s answering whistle, but instead 
of that they soon heard the loud screaming and 
shouting of the people tumbling down the 
stairway, and in a moment more they smelled 
the smoke from the fire in the Vitilli apart¬ 
ment. Almost at the same instant bareheaded 
men and women came running down the street. 

“Some house is on fire,” exclaimed Uncle 
Weary, jumping from the car. “Stay where 
you are till I come back,” he called to the boys 
over his shoulder. 

He had not gone a dozen steps before he met 

a wild-eyed Italian who shouted to him in Eng- 

215 


216 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


lish: “Go to the nearest telephone and call the 
Fire Department. We cannot make our fire 
alarm work. ’ 9 

Without waiting to ask questions, Uncle 
Weary sprang back to his wheel, saying as he 
started his engine: “Get out as fast as you 
can, boys, and wait till I come back. Take 
our rope—it may be of some use. Keep your 
wits about you. Do what you can, but don’t get 
into danger if you can help it.” 

The boys pulled the heavy rope from under 
the back seat, jumped out and stood on the 
sidewalk while Uncle Weary backed his car 
swiftly from the s-treet. He was not out of 
sight before smoke began to appear at an upper 
window of the apartment house, only a few 
doors from where they were. They stood gaz¬ 
ing at the house together with a crowd of ex¬ 
cited people, most of them women, who stood 
wringing their hands and weeping, all of them 
helpless, not knowing what to do, when they 
saw Tony at the window as he tossed the babies 
in their blanket on to the floor of the balcony. 


THE RESCUERS 


217 


“Come on, Ed,” cried Arcliie, picking up the 
coil of rope. “We must get up to Tony.” 

“Yes, but how?” said Eddie, running after 
Archie through the crowd. 

‘‘ Fire escape, ’ ’ called back Archie. ‘‘ Hurry. ’ ’ 

No one except that bright-eyed American boy 
had thought of using the slender black ladders 
hanging from the balconies at every story of 
the building. And if any one had thought of 
it he would have been too frightened and dazed 
to attempt mounting one of them. Besides 
most of these ladders had been used as trellises 
for climbing vines and were almost hidden from 
sight. 

The bottom of the lowest ladder was six feet 
from the ground, but the boys knew how to 
meet this difficulty. Eddie bent his back, 
Archie mounted on to it, and swung himself 
up to the first rung of the ladder very much 
as he had often done in his gymnasium at 
school. 

A fruit peddler’s cart piled with apples, 
oranges, and vegetables stood within reach of 


218 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

Eddie. It was covered with a cloth and had 
evidently been left there by its owner nntil 
he could get it into shelter before going to 
bed. The quick-witted boy pulled the cart un¬ 
der the ladder, and before the crowd knew 
what he was doing had jumped on to the cart, 
turned over a half-bushel measure which he 
mounted, and as he was several inches taller 
than Archie, easily swung up and clutched the 
ladder. By the time the heroic Tony had been 
able to lift the head and shoulders of the woman 
on to the window sill the two boys were on the 
balcony. 

Tony was not surprised to see the boys. 
Ever since they had appeared in what seemed 
to him a miraculous way the year before, when 
they saved his life on the top of a building in 
Danton in a flood, he called them his guardian 
angels. He looked up to them now, saying sim¬ 
ply, “Adi, now we are saved ,’ 9 and all three 
pulled the dead weight of the poor mother 
through the window. The window sill was low, 
it was quickly done and the window closed, but 


THE RESCUERS 


219 


at the same moment they heard a loud crack 
and felt the frail balcony sway beneath them. 

“Oh, what shall we do? It’s going down!” 
screamed Eddie. 

“Do!” shouted Archie. “Keep your wits 
about you first thing. Don’t you see we’ve 
got to hurry? We must get some of this weight 
off or we’ll all go down. Tie the end of the 
rope to the railing of the balcony and I’ll fasten 
the other to the bundle and let the children 
down. ’ ’ 

By this time a ladder had been raised to the 
fire escape of the second story and the scream¬ 
ing babies were received in the hands of a 
strong man who stood near its top, and Archie 
pulled back the rope and blanket. 

It was a difficult task to tie the woman in the 
blanket and lift her over the railing which was 
now slanting dangerously outward. But the 
three worked desperately and succeeded in 
sending her safely to the arms of the big man 
on the ladder, who carried her to the waiting- 
throng below. 


220 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Now, Tony, you must go next,” said Archie. 

“Oh, I cannot leave you,” he began, but 
Archie interrupted, saying urgently: ‘ ‘ But you 
must, Tony. You are the heaviest, and we must 
get as much weight off the fire escape as we 
can or it will go down with us. Ed and I will 
follow you. Don’t wait a minute, shin down 
the rope, quick.” 

Tony was accustomed to obey orders without 
question, and he had the utmost faith in 
Archie’s judgment. He grasped the rope, and 
in an instant reached the ladder below. The 
big man was there to help him on to the top 
rung, but by a misstep Tony lost his balance 
and knocked the man and the ladder down, fall¬ 
ing himself on to a pile of bedding some tenants 
in the apartment below had thrown out of the 
window. Neither of the men were much hurt 
and were quickly taken to places of safety. 
The ladder was broken, however, and could not 
be used again. 

The fire inside the room had now reached 
the window and broken out several panes of 



“Don’t give np, Uncle Weary’ll save us yet.” 










THE RESCUERS 


221 


glass. Tongues of flame leaped out and would 
have scorched the boys if the fire escape had 
not now been hanging out at least two feet 
from the building. At Archie’s command Eddie 
had his hand on the rope to follow Tony when 
a voice called: “Hold on. You mustn’t come 
down the rope and you mustn’t use the ladder 
or you’ll pull down the fire escape. The fire¬ 
men will put up a long ladder for you.” 

The fire escape was hanging by one bolt. 
Every one watching below expected to see it 
crash down in an instant. The terrified boys 
saw the danger and looked wildly around for 
help. Eddie sank to the floor of the swaying 
balcony with his hands over his face, moan¬ 
ing, “Oh, mother, mother!” 

“Hold on, Ed,” cried Archie. “Don’t give 
up, Uncle Weary’ll save us yet.” 

And then, above the roar of the flames behind 
them and the shouts of many hoarse voices on 
the street and the rushing sound of water be¬ 
ing pumped into hose, they heard a loud clear 
whistle. 


222 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


“Oh, there he is!” cried Eddie, jumping up 
and laughing hysterically. 

“Keep still and listen to what he says,” cried 
Archie sternly. 

The little boy held his breath and they both 
leaned over the railing to hear Uncle Weary’s 
orders. They came through a big megaphone 
in the hands of a fireman. 

“Jump into the net, Eddie first.” 

Without an instant’s delay the boy jumped 
on to the railing and made a flying leap in the 
air and sank into the meshes of a great net 
held by four firemen and dozens of other strong 
men. He was pulled out instantly, and again 
the voice through the megaphone called, “Now, 
Archie.” 

A great shout of rejoicing, mingled with the 
loud weeping of women, rose from the crowd 
as the form of Archie sailed through the air 
and landed safely in the net. 


CHAPTER XIX 


HOMEWARD BOUND 


T HE frail balcony fell as Arcliie left it, 
crashing down on the one below. No one 
was hurt by it, for all the people living in the 
apartments had run out at the first alarm and 
the firemen had cleared the street in front of 
the building. Two great streams of water 
played on the flames in the burning room, and 
in ten minutes the fire was out. Uncle Weary’s 
prompt action in calling the fire department 
had brought the fire fighters in time to save 
the street. Mr. and Mrs. Vitilli were taken to 
a hospital and Uncle Weary drove Tony and 
the boys to Allserene as quickly as possible. 
They looked very grimy and battered, and Tony 
was ill from swallowing smoke. Archie had 
dislocated his shoulder in falling, and Eddie’s 
ankle was slightly sprained and their hands 

223 


i 


224 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


were blistered from handling the rope. But 
their injuries were not very serious. It seemed 
a miracle that they had escaped so easily. 

They were so excited that they forgot their 
pain as they told the story of their adventure. 
Granny and Aunt Em had heard or seen noth¬ 
ing of the fire. The whole affair had taken 
place so quickly it did not seem possible to 
them that their precious boys had been through 
so much danger and only began to realize it 
after they had been bathed and put in their 
beds and two doctors arrived in an auto to 
attend them. Their blisters, sprains, and 
Archie’s shoulder were properly cared for and 
Tony was taken in their car to the hospital for 
the treatment he needed. The exhausted boys 
were asleep before the doctor’s automobile was 
beyond hearing and in a few moments two re¬ 
porters from the city came out on a trolley to 
interview the Allserene party. Uncle Weary 
took them beyond hearing of the tent and gave 
them the details of the rescue, as he had heard 
it from the boys, in his clear-cut concise way. 


HOMEWARD BOUND 


225 


They asked him a great many questions about 
their journey and about the boys, which the 
young man managed to answer without giving 
out much information, and the men were about 
to go when Aunt Em called her husband to her 
and said in a low voice: “Will, Mother and I 
want to talk to the reporters, too. Please in¬ 
troduce us.” 

“Why, I’ve told them everything they need 
to know,” he began. 

“No, I don’t believe you have,” she said. 
“I know your way. They’ll be making up 
stories about us if they can’t hear the truth. 
You don’t mind, do you, if we tell them about 
Tony’s fund and what the boys have done?” 

“No, go ahead and do your worst,” he said 
resignedly, “but don’t do any gushing about 
the boys. It wouldn’t be good for them.” 

She promised to be careful and joined 
Granny, who was already walking toward the 
reporters, while her husband promised to stay 
with the boys. 

The eager reporters were very much pleased 


226 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


with the story they were able to get from the 
two ladies, and the next morning’s paper pub¬ 
lished a long and thrilling account of the ex¬ 
ploits of Tony and the boys in saving the Ital¬ 
ian family. Photographs of the three heroes, 
as they were called, were printed and also those 
of the Vitilli family. A local artist had drawn 
a picture from imagination of the two boys 
leaping through the air together to the net be¬ 
low while flames were bursting from the build¬ 
ings on all sides. The names of the three boys 
were given, mentioning the fact that Archie 
and Eddie were sons of millionaires in the East 
and that the boys had been earning money in 
various ways on their trip to bring Tony’s 
family from Italy to this country. The story 
made a great sensation. Everybody read it 
and talked about it to his neighbors, and vis¬ 
itors began to arrive in autos and on foot. So 
many flowers were sent that Allserene over¬ 
flowed with them. By the doctors’ orders the 
boys were kept in bed for a day and at night 
the encampment was moved several miles away 


HOMEWARD BOUND 


227 


to a quiet spot on a farm where strangers could 
not find them, for the doctors agreed that the 
boys had been through such intense excitement 
that their nerves needed complete rest for sev¬ 
eral days. 

After consulting his wife and mother Uncle 
Weary sent a long telegram or “night-letter” 
to each of the boys’ parents, telling them what 
had happened and asking them to let him know 
if they wished the boys sent home when they 
were able to travel. Replies from the Stebbins 
and the Taggerts came at once. Colonel Steb¬ 
bins ’ telegram ran: “We are very proud of 
our boy. We leave you to decide the date of 
his return.” Mr. Taggert wired: “His mother 
and I have perfect confidence in your judgment 
about Edward’s return. We rejoice in his 
bravery and his safety and consider ourselves 
fortunate to call him our son.” 

Uncle Weary was much touched and pleased 
by their replies. The boys would be well 
enough to go on in a day or two, but Tony, 
it was found, would need the care of doctors 


228 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


and expert nurses for at least a week and they 
could not think of leaving him. Only two weeks 
of the boys’ vacation remained. It seemed best 
to end their trip very soon. So it was decided 
that Uncle Weary would go by train to Kansas 
to attend to his business affairs. His wife and 
mother were to wait for him where they were 
and start on their homeward journey when 
Tony was able to travel. 

The warm-hearted and excitable citizens of 
11 Baby Italy,” as the street was called, were 
so overcome with gratitude for what these 
strangers had done for them they felt that they 
could not do enough to show their apprecia¬ 
tion. 

They were sure that their whole street would 
have been burned if the firemen had not come 
so quickly and they owed that blessing to Uncle 
Weary. And as for Tony and the boys—they 

believed they were more than human beings 

/ 

and were sent by the saints to risk their lives 
to save the Yitelli family, and their pride and 
affection for Tony as one of their race knew 


HOMEWARD BOUND 229 

no bounds. A box for contributions to the 
Tony Madalo Fund bad been placed in the city 
ball and coins of all sizes had been dropped 
into it during the day after the fire. Uncle 
Weary had asked through the reporters that 
no large contributions from wealthy citizens 
should be given, as that was against the spirit 
of their enterprise. The people of “Baby 
Italy” were represented by their intelligent 
and public-spirited priest, who wrote for them 
a letter to the Allserene party expressing their 
thanks and blessings and begging that the 
money they raised for Tony’s family might 
alone be used to bring them to this country 
and offering a home for the emigrants on their 
arrival so that they would feel that they were 
among their own people. The letter was signed 
by every man and woman on the street and the 
sum raised by these poor and hard-working 
people was quite enough to make the Tony 
Madalo fund complete. 

By Uncle Weary’s advice the contributions 
in the box at the city hall were used for the 


230 A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 

benefit of the Vitilli family, who were the only 
ones that had really suffered from the accident. 

When Uncle Weary told the boys of the de¬ 
cision to send them home by train as soon as 
they could travel, he gave them the reasons 
for this change in their plans and said he ex¬ 
pected they would not spoil their record as 
good soldiers by making a fuss about it, and 
that if nothing happened to prevent they would 
go the next summer to the “real West,” beyond 
the Mississippi, starting on their journey with 
Allserene from this very spot. 

Uncle Weary and Aunt Em had been brought 
up to think that “praise to the face is open 
disgrace.’’ They could not tell the boys and 
Tony in words their pride in, and their appre¬ 
ciation of, their really heroic performance dur¬ 
ing the fire. Uncle Weary only said with a 
very husky voice: “Well, boys, you did the 
right thing. Just what I expected of you.” 

The little boys knew this was a high com¬ 
pliment from Uncle Weary, and it was one that 
completely satisfied them. 


HOMEWARD BOUND 


231 


Aunt Em said nothing, but she cried a little 
when the doctors left, and gave the boys a fer¬ 
vent hug before they went to sleep. But 
Granny poured out to them with tears and 
blessings such a heartful of love and of pride 
in their exploit that the little fellows were al¬ 
most abashed. They could not understand her 
depth of feeling about a deed they honestly be¬ 
lieved any boys under the circumstances would 
have performed. It really took more courage 
to say good-by cheerfully to these dear friends 
than it had to save the Italian family. 

Archie, as usual, was silent and sober when 
the hour for parting came, but Eddie had to 
sob in Granny’s arms, and even Aunt Em cried 
openly when she said good-by, and when the 
boys visited the hospital to say good-by to Tony 
and the Vitillis Eddie had another good cry 
as he kissed his weeping Italian friends, who 
tried to tell in broken English that they would 
pray to the saints the rest of their lives for 
blessings on the heads of their saviors. 

Archie, with his arm in a sling, and Eddie, 


232 


A TRIP WITH A TRAILER 


red-eyed but smiling and hobbling along with 
a cane, walked down the platform of the rail¬ 
way station to their train through a crowd of 
people who had heard of their departure and 
had come to see them off. All of “Baby Italy” 
seemed to be there. A few yards from their 
train they found themselves walking alone and 
rather dazed between two rows of black-eyed 
boys and girls, most of them dressed in white, 
who strewed flowers in their path, while their 
ardent Italian parents shouted blessing on the 
young travelers’ heads. 

But it was Uncle Weary’s tall form that they 
saw last, and as they moved out of sight they 
knew that his waving hand toward them meant. 
“Brace up!” 


THE END 





























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